US Court Appearance Scheduled For Do Kwon Amid Claims Of $40 Billion In Crypto Losses
The post US Court Appearance Scheduled For Do Kwon Amid Claims Of $40 Billion In Crypto Losses appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
Do Kwon, the South Korean entrepreneur behind the failed cryptocurrencies TerraUSD and Luna, is set to appear in a Manhattan federal court on Thursday, facing serious criminal fraud charges. This follows his recent extradition from Montenegro, where he had been detained for over a year after attempting to use falsified travel documents at the country’s Podgorica airport. Do Kwon Faces Criminal Charges In The US Kwon’s legal troubles stem from the catastrophic collapse of his digital currencies in 2022, which resulted in an estimated loss of $40 billion for investors. The SEC and the Manhattan US Attorney’s office allege that Kwon misled investors about the stability of TerraUSD, a stablecoin purported to maintain a value of $1. The failure of TerraUSD, along with its sister token Luna, triggered a broader downturn in the cryptocurrency market, impacting established digital assets like Bitcoin (BTC). Federal prosecutors in Manhattan have charged him with multiple counts, including securities fraud, wire fraud, commodities fraud, and conspiracy. However, Do Kwon has consistently denied any wrongdoing, asserting that he acted transparently regarding the workings of his products. In a significant development last June, Kwon agreed to pay an $80 million civil fine to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as part of a $4.55 billion settlement related to his company, Terraform Labs. As part of the settlement, Do Kwon also accepted a ban on future cryptocurrency transactions. Despite this, Kwon’s legal challenges are far from over, as he faces the potential for criminal penalties in the US judicial system. During a civil trial in April, a federal jury found Kwon and Terraform Labs liable for defrauding investors. Closing arguments from Terraform’s legal team contended that Kwon had been truthful about his products, even as they failed. However, Do Kwon was absent from the trial due to…
Filed under: News - @ January 3, 2025 10:23 am