TL; DR Breakdown
- SEC delivers verdict on Bitconnect scam lead promoter
- Investors lost $2 billion to the platform
- Arcaro banned from coin offering activities
In the last few years, regulators have been working overtime to apprehend malicious actors in the crypto sector and the financial sector as a whole. However, the anonymous nature of the market is making it a daunting task. In another win for regulators against perpetrators of ills in the crypto sector, the verdict on the United States SEC case vs. the ring leader of the Bitconnect scam has been delivered.
Bitconnect scam explained
According to the United States regulator, they have obtained the verdict against the scam leader, Glenn Marco, and the company backing him, Future Money Ltd. This judgment is coming off the back of a protracted court battle after the regulator apprehended the suspect in the Bitconnect scam as far back as September. Marco was said to be at the forefront as he introduced the platform to many United States citizens.
The suspect also answers guilty to other criminal charges against him regarding the scam. The Bitconnect scam is adjudged by the crypto sector as one of the biggest scams to have ever taken place. The scam was perpetrated in 2017 when Initial Coin Offering was still very popular. The owners of Bitconnect took advantage of this and defrauded investors of about $2 billion in total.
In their statement, the United States SEC mentioned that Arco was the lead promoter of the platform in the United States, a position he held from August 2017 to January 2018. He also acted as the middleman between investors and other promoters, passing and relating information whenever possible.
Lead promoter banned from coin offering activities
Arcaro’s company has pleaded guilty to all the charges leveled against them in their participation in the Bitconnect scam. In the verdict, Arcaro has been banned from operating or participating in anything related to sales across the United States. Furthermore, he and his firm are now prohibited from hosting any coin offering.
Although the court has asked Arcaro to pay a fine with interests and other penalties, the fee that the head of the Bitconnect scam will pay has not been decided at this time. Asides from Arcaro, other parties that were indicted include the founder of the platform, Satish Kimbhani. The United States has also announced plans to start offsetting the seized digital assets from the platform at a predetermined date.
