The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed charges against crypto trading platform Beaxy and its executives. In addition, regulators alleged that the founder of the cryptocurrency exchange raised $8 million in an unregistered crypto token offering and “misappropriated at least $900,000 for personal use, including gambling.”
SEC Charges Crypto Exchange Platform Beaxy
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)announcedWednesday that it has filed charges against crypto asset trading platform Beaxy, its founders, and its executives.SEC Chairman Gary Gensler commented:
We allege that Beaxy and its affiliates performed the functions of an exchange, broker, clearinghouse, and dealer without registering with the Commission and without complying with the clear and time-tested rules governing these activities.
The securities watchdog alleges that Beaxy and its executives failed to “register as a state-owned stock exchange, broker, and clearing house,” as well as “platform founder Artak Hamazaspyan and the company he controls, Beaxy Digital Ltd, for raising $8 million in an unregistered offering of Beaxy tokens (BXY).”
The SEC alleges that “Hamazaspyan diverted at least $900,000 to his personal use, including gambling.” The regulator also “charged market makers operating on the Beaxy Platform as unregistered dealers.”
The SEC alleged in its complaint that Nicholas Murphy and Randolph Bay Abbott, through their management of Windy, have operated the Beaxy Platform since October 2019.The SEC alleged that the two persuaded Hamazaspyan to resign after offering BXY It noted that.
Beaxy Shuts Down
Following the SEC’s enforcement action, Beaxy announced on its website: “Regrettably, we are informing you that we are suspending Beaxy Exchange services immediately. Due to the uncertain regulatory environment surrounding our business, we have made the difficult decision to cease operations.”
while emphasizing that:
“We have been openly committed to working with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for over two years and have continued to provide information, data, and interviews to assist the regulator in any way we could:
but unfortunately, despite our best efforts, it has become clear that the regulatory environment is too uncertain for us to continue our operations.
Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons, lev radin.