A U.S. District Judge sentenced Nikhil Wahi to 10 months He was put in jail on Tuesday, ending part of a historic cryptocurrency criminal case. Wahi, the younger brother of a former Coinbase product manager, billed Attempted a wire fraud last July summoned public prosecutor “The First Ever Cryptocurrency Insider Trading Case”.
“I made a big mistake, I made a terrible mistake,” Wahhi said Tuesday.
Nikhil pleaded guilty in September, admitting that his brother Ishan Wahi used his position on one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges to provide sensitive information about his asset list. Ishan told Nikhil when the coin was about to be listed on Coinbase. In response, Nikhil bought shares of the cryptocurrency just before it appeared on popular exchanges via an anonymous wallet. Justified by its presence on Coinbase when the value of the coin inevitably rose after its listing. Nikhil said he would sell the stake for profit. statement From the Southern District Attorney of New York.
“Today’s ruling makes clear that the cryptocurrency market is not lawless,” said prosecutor Damian Williams.
In total, Nikhil reportedly earned $892,500 from his brother’s illegal advice and traded in advance of 40 different Coinbase announcements. report From Reuters. As part of the sentence, he was ordered to pay back the full amount in addition to ten months’ imprisonment.
“That’s what I have to live with forever.” Nikhil Wahi told Sentencing Judge Loretta Presca.according to report from BloombergHe is subject to deportation to India after completing his sentence. Nikhil’s attorneys argued that her client was motivated by a desire to support her parents in India and repay the cost of a college education in the United States, Bloomberg reported.
Ishan and a third party named Sameer Ramani, a friend of Nikhil, have also been charged with an insider trading scheme. Ishan pleaded not guilty to his charges, bailed in July. His lawsuit is pending. Meanwhile, Ramani is not in US custody and is believed to be on the run.
“Illegal insider trading has real implications wherever and whenever it occurs,” said prosecutor Williams.But one conviction and sentencing does not create a robust regulatory system.A crypto insider trading scandal reached the hallowed halls of Congress earlier this year. The House Ethics Committee has fined North Carolina Rep.15,000 For his apparent illegal sophistication in NASCAR’s failed Let’s Go Brandon Coin sponsorship, and for his promotion of memecoinCawthorn was not criminally charged. And, as usual, scams and scams abound on the blockchain.scam FTX CEO trial Sam Bankman-Fried is due in October.
It was a stroke of luck that the Wahhi brothers were arrested. Twitter user @cobie spotted a sketchy EthereWell, I bought one and posted about it. “About 24 hours before going public, I found an ETH address to buy hundreds of thousands of dollars of tokens that was exclusively featured in a coinbase asset listing post,” @cobie tweeted on April 12th. . report From The Verge. One day later, Coinbase Chief Security Officer Responds The exchange says it is investigating. other tweets Pointing out similar anomalies, but in those tweets No one was arrested.