Enforcement Actions

According to Bittrex's attorneys, the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange filed a motion this week with a federal court in Seattle to vacate its 2023 settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and order the agency to return the $24 million in penalties paid. The exchange argues that th

Zondacrypto, an Estonia-registered digital asset trading platform, announced last month that it was on the brink of collapse after attracting $100 million in savings from Polish clients following a major marketing campaign. The company has since stopped servicing client accounts, and state

Michael Zidell sues Citibank in Manhattan federal court for $20M in pig butchering transfers, alleging AML neglect and ignored alerts. Abstract: The article describes Michael Zidell's suit against Citibank in Manhattan federal court, alleging negligent AML controls allowed $20 million to be sent to pig butchering scammers via accounts linked to Carolyn Parker and Guju Inc. It frames the case amid rising crypto scams and systemic fiat-crypto AML vulnerabilities.

A federal judge in Washington, D.C. sentenced 20-year-old California resident Marlon Ferro to 78 months in prison on Wednesday for his role in a criminal network that stole more than $250 million in cryptocurrency from victims across the United States, according to court records. Ferro, who operated

Local media, citing court documents, reported that Kenya’s Criminal Investigations Department (DCI) Capital Markets Fraud Investigations Unit arrested suspect Dickson Ndege Nyakango at the I&M Bank branch on Kenyatta Avenue on May 4. DCI detectives told the court that the alleged fraud platform had scammed about $440k from multiple investors. The court ordered Nyakango be remanded in custody at the Kilemani Police Station for seven days.

According to Cointelegraph, on May 7, Keonne Rodriguez, co-founder of Samourai Wallet, was sentenced to five years in prison and fined $250,000 for operating an unlicensed money transmitter. Rodriguez is facing an additional $2 million in legal fees and has appealed to the crypto community for

According to CFTC Chair Michael Selig at Consensus 2026, the CFTC has sued approximately five to six states, including Arizona, Connecticut, Illinois, and New York, over regulatory authority of prediction markets. The core dispute centers on whether the CFTC or state regulators have jurisdiction ove

According to an official statement released by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) on May 7, 20-year-old California man Marlon Ferro was sentenced by a federal court to 78 months in prison for his involvement in a nationwide crypto asset social engineering scam, along with 3 years of supervised release and $2.5 million in restitution. The DOJ statement said the criminal group stole more than $250 million worth of crypto assets from multiple victims.

According to Decrypt reports and related court documents, the now-closed crypto exchange Bittrex filed a motion to dismiss this week in the U.S. Federal Court in Seattle, seeking to overturn its 2023 settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and requesting that the SEC refund the $24 million civil penalty it has already paid.

According to Aave’s May 7 announcement, the Arbitrum DAO voting to unlock ETH related to the April 18 rsETH incident has reached the quorum, with over 1,600 addresses, receiving unanimous support from the community. On the same day, Aave, following its established governance procedures, completed the liquidation of the remaining rsETH positions in the Aave protocol held by the attacker of Kelp DAO.

According to Decrypt, Bittrex filed a motion this week to void its $24 million settlement with the SEC from 2023 and demand a full refund. Bittrex's lawyers argued that the SEC admitted its legal theory classifying the crypto tokens as unregistered securities was flawed, and the Trump

At Consensus Miami, CFTC Chair Michael Selig said the agency plans to formalize guidance on when crypto software developers must register as brokers. In March, the CFTC issued a no-action letter stating it would not pursue enforcement against wallet provider Phantom for failing to register. Selig ai

Attorneys for victims of three North Korea terrorism cases filed a 30-page response on Tuesday, reframing the April 18 Aave hack as fraud rather than theft — a legal distinction that could grant the attackers legal title to the borrowed crypto. The victims are seeking to recover approximately $71 mi

An anonymous crypto whale identified as "D.B." filed a lawsuit on Monday against Coinbase and an alleged thief over the exchange's refusal to return frozen funds linked to an August 2024 crypto theft, according to a court filing. The plaintiff lost approximately $55 million worth of DAI in the incid

According to CFTC Chair Michael Selig speaking on Tuesday at Consensus Miami, the agency plans to codify protections for non-custodial software developers through formal rulemaking. In March, the CFTC issued a no-action letter stating it would not pursue enforcement against crypto wallet provider

North Korea terror attack case escalates: $71 million in Aave frozen assets enter a third round. The plaintiffs now invoke the TRIA statute to claim that ETH is North Korea’s state property, stressing fraud rather than theft to get around the thief-not-possessor-of-stolen-goods defense, while also challenging Aave’s standing and governance status. DeFi United has raised more than $328 million, with sufficient funding to compensate affected users. The case could become a key precedent for DeFi legal principles and DAO governance.

According to Seoul High Court's Administrative Division 4-3, on April 16, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) partially won its appeal against cryptocurrency exchange A's injunction request, with 3 of 4 administrative orders upheld. The exchange stopped operations on November 30, 2020, but

According to The Block on May 6, an anonymous crypto whale who filed a lawsuit under the pseudonym “DB” sued Coinbase and the accused thief “John Doe” on Monday, accusing Coinbase of refusing to return frozen DAI funds related to a 2024 crypto theft case even after it provided sworn affidavit proof that it is the legitimate owner.