Cryptocurrency tycoon Do Kwon faces 130 years in prison

Federal prosecutors in Manhattan, New York (USA) announced on January 2 an indictment against Do Kwon, a Korean cryptocurrency tycoon. According to Reuters, Kwon (33 years old), wanted on fraud charges, was arrested in March 2023 in Montenegro and has just been extradited to the US.

Do Kwon in Montenegro in March 2024

Kwon and the Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange Terraform Labs, which he co-founded, were sued by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in February 2023 over the TerraUSD and Luna cryptocurrencies. The agency said the collapse of these coins caused about $40 billion in losses to the cryptocurrency market.

The SEC said Terraform Labs and Mr. Kwon misled investors about the stability of TerraUSD. TerraUSD was designed to maintain price stability with the US dollar at a rate of 1 TerraUSD equaling 1 USD. In May 2021, the market price of TerraUSD fell sharply, but Kwon hired a trading firm to secretly buy millions of the currency to inflate the price and defraud investors, Reuters reported, citing the indictment.

This currency crashed in May 2022, causing the cryptocurrency market to fluctuate, one of the biggest disasters in the history of digital currency, affecting many other currencies, including Bitcoin.

According to the indictment, Do Kwon was charged with nine counts of fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The defendant pleaded not guilty. Kwon's defense attorney did not apply for bail, so the judge ordered the defendant detained. Kwon was carrying a copy of the 79-page indictment when he was escorted from the courthouse by security forces. He is scheduled to appear in court again on January 8.

In June, Kwon agreed to pay an $80 million fine and be banned from trading digital currencies as part of a settlement with the SEC. According to Yonhap news agency, Do Kwon could face up to 130 years in prison if convicted on all charges.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/trum-tien-so-do-kwon-doi-dien-ban-an-130-nam-tu-185250103111920437.htm