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To Settle SEC Case Against Poloniex, Circle Allocated $10.4 Million

Wed, 07/21/2021 - 08:13
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Alihuseyn Gulu-Zada
Cryptocurrency operator Circle has allocated $10.4 million to SEC and Poloniex case
To Settle SEC Case Against Poloniex, Circle Allocated $10.4 Million
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Cryptocurrency operator Circle allocated $10.4 million to resolve the SEC case against cryptocurrency exchange Poloniex. Note that, relatively recently, Poloniex ceased its operations. According to The Wall Street Journal, in addition to this amount and the SEC case, Circle will also face fines from OFAC. The size of the fines is estimated to range from $1.1 million to $2.8 million, according to various sources.

History

Cryptocurrency operator Circle recently announced that it was going public. It took this step through a merger with a specialized company in this business. Such a merger cost Circle $4.5 billion.

It is worth noting that Circle acquired Poloniex in 2018, but it announced the sale a year later. The main reason the company cited was that it wanted to get rid of speculative trading in cryptocurrency assets. The cryptocurrency operator appealed to the SEC regarding this issue. Poloniex, on the other hand, suffered a loss of $156.8 million.

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Circle's motives

In its official statement, Circle noted that it is under investigation by OFAC. Please note that that U.S. department is also authorized to enforce U.S. sanctions.

Circle, for instance, stated that it was notified by OFAC in 2019 about probable breaches of U.S. sanctions by embargoed clients' exchange accounts. "The cost of the issue" was estimated to be between $1.1 million and $2.8 million by the Bitcoin exchange's management.

PHOTO: ANDREW KELLY/REUTERS

Comments from officials?

Interestingly, both Circle representatives and SEC officials declined to comment on the matter. OFAC completely refused to comment.

Recall that the regulation of digital currencies in the U.S. is developing very rapidly. Circle hired a new compliance director in May of this year.

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About the author

Alihuseyn graduated from Yale University with a focus on linguistics and philosophy. He has worked as a journalist-analyst for Trend News Agency. At the same time, he is an academically trained singer (baritone) and a composer. Alihuseyn has been involved in cryptocurrency and blockchain since 2017 and is an enthusiast in this field, considering blockchain technology revolutionary and capable of changing society. In this area, he has written several theoretical and analytical pieces.