Chun Gan and Ke Tang, founders of the cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin, have been charged by the US Justice Department for various offenses. Some of the charges include running an unauthorized money service business and breaking the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA).
Authorities claim that the platform's founders purposefully neglected to put in place an Anti-Money Laundering program. This allowed money laundering and financing of terrorism to take place there.
Claiming to have a sizable US client base, KuCoin allegedly concealed the fact that US users were actively trading on its site. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams claims that in spite of breaking American law, the exchange rose to become one of the most well-known cryptocurrency exchanges globally. This enabled trillions of dollars in trades annually and billions of dollars in daily transactions.
"Platforms like KuCoin that capitalize on U.S. market opportunities must respect U.S. legislation to root out crime and prevent corrupt financing schemes," Williams stated.
Allegedly, Gan and Tang deliberately avoided their AML duties. This avoidance allowed KuCoin to flourish under the shadow of the financial markets. According to the indictment, KuCoin allegedly handled over $4B in illicit and questionable financial transactions.
According to Williams, cryptocurrency exchanges cannot evade US regulations if they want to conduct business with Americans. KuCoin allegedly prevented its American consumers from identifying themselves, even though it was aware of their existence, giving a false impression that there were no American customers.
Additionally, the exchange reportedly misled an investor who marked 2022 about the location of its customers. KuCoin and its founders are facing serious legal ramifications as a result of alleged dishonest business practices.
