New York Attorney General sues CoinEx for unregistered brokerage activity

Rick Steves

“The days of crypto companies like CoinEx acting like the rules do not apply to them are over. My office will continue to protect New York investors and ensure our state’s laws are followed.”

New York Attorney General Letitia James has filed a complaint against CoinEx for failing to register as a securities and commodities broker-dealer and for falsely representing itself as a crypto exchange.

The enforcement action is taking place after the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) was able to buy and sell cryptocurrencies on CoinEx in New York, although the company is unregistered in the state: this is a violation of New York’s Martin Act.

The goal of the lawsuit is to permanently stop CoinEx from operating in New York through its website and mobile apps.

New York Attorney General Letitia James commented: “Our laws are designed to protect New Yorkers, and when companies ignore them, they put residents, investors, and businesses at risk. The days of crypto companies like CoinEx acting like the rules do not apply to them are over. My office will continue to protect New York investors and ensure our state’s laws are followed.”

NYAG says CoinEx is a broker, not an exchange

CoinEx is a virtual currency trading platform that allows investors to buy and sell cryptocurrency through its website and app. On its platform, CoinEx investors can buy and sell popular virtual currencies, including AMP, LUNA, LBC, and $RLY, which are securities and commodities.

New York law requires securities and commodities brokers to register with the state, which CoinEx failed to do. The OAG was able to create an account with CoinEx using a computer with a New York based IP address to buy and sell digital tokens, which CoinEx charged a fee for.

In addition, CoinEx claimed to be an exchange, but is not registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a national securities exchange or appropriately designated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as is required under New York law.

CoinEx also failed to comply with a subpoena issued by OAG to provide more information about its digital asset trading activities in the state.

NY Attorney General James seeks a court order that stops CoinEx from misrepresenting that it is an exchange, prevents the company from operating in New York, and directs CoinEx to implement geo-blocking based on IP addresses and GPS location to prevent access to CoinEx’s mobile app, website, and services from New York.

Read this next

Digital Assets

US, UK probe $20 billion Tether transfers tied to Russian exchange.

U.S. and UK authorities are investigating the movement of $20 billion in the USD-pegged stablecoin tether (USDT) through Moscow-based exchange Garantex.

Digital Assets

BlockDAG Presale Raises $9.9M as Batch 5 Nears Sell-Out Amid Bonk’s Fluctuating Trading Volume & Spell’s Bullish Price

Explore BONK’s trading volume, SPELL’s market shifts, and why BlockDAG’s 10,000 ROI makes it an ideal crypto for savvy investors in 2024.

Digital Assets

Bybit expands into Europe amid regulatory scrutiny

Dubai-based cryptocurrency exchange Bybit is expanding its operations in Europe after encountering regulatory challenges in Hong Kong.

Digital Assets

Cathie Wood’s sponsored Bitcoin ETF sees historic $200 million inflows

The ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB), co-sponsored by Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest, registered historic inflows exceeding $200 million on Wednesday, signaling a robust appetite among investors for Bitcoin-centric investments.

Digital Assets

Sam Bankman-Fried might see his 25-year sentence halved

Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison by a Manhattan court on Thursday. This comes after he was convicted of defrauding customers and investors, with Judge Lewis Kaplan highlighting the potential future risks posed by Bankman-Fried.

Technical Analysis

EURJPY Technical Analysis Report 28 March, 2024

EURJPY currency pair under the bearish pressure after the pair reversed down from the major resistance level 164.25, which also stopped the sharp weekly uptrend at the end of last year,

Digital Assets

BlockDAG’s Presale Hits $9.9M, MultiversX & MINA Price Predictions Show Green

Read about BlockDAG’s promising $10 prediction and insights on MultiversX Price Prediction as MINA’s potential unfolds.

Digital Assets

Rockstar Co-Founder and All-star Line Up Join Advisory Board to Take Metacade into Post Beta Orbit

Metacade, the revolutionary Web3 gaming platform, prepares to streak out of beta with a slew of ground-breaking initiatives that will redefine the way blockchain games are developed.

Retail FX

Prop firm The Funded Trader shuts down, claims relaunch in April

Prop trading firm The Funded Trader has ceased all operations, with claims for a relaunch in the near future.

<