29 August 2022

BakerHostetler

To print this article, all you need is to be registered or login on Mondaq.com.

According to a press release published this week by the U.S.
Department of Justice (DOJ), three individuals from Miami have been
arrested for their involvement in a scheme that used cryptocurrency
to defraud U.S. banks. According to the indictment, the three
defendants used stolen identities to buy more than $4 million in
cryptocurrency and then falsely claimed that the cryptocurrency
transactions were unauthorized. This deceived U.S. banks and a
leading cryptocurrency exchange into reversing those transactions
and depositing the ill-gotten funds into the defendants’ bank
accounts. According to the press release, the defendants’
scheme resulted in U.S. banks processing more than $4 million in
fraudulent transaction reversals and the cryptocurrency exchange
losing more than $3.5 million in cryptocurrency. The defendants
face multiple charges of fraud and conspiracy to commit fraud, and
face over 30 years in prison.

A leading blockchain analytics firm recently released its
midyear cryptocurrency crime update. The report finds that despite
this year’s downturn in cryptocurrency prices, illicit activity
in the area is resilient. Among other things, the study found that
illicit trading volumes are down 15 percent year over year,
compared with a 36 percent decline for legitimate volumes. While
scams and darknet activity are down as compared to 2021, hacks of
exchanges and stolen funds buck the declining trend, with $1.9
billion of cryptocurrency stolen in hacks of services through July
2022, compared to just under $1.2 billion at the same time in July
2021.

For more information, please refer to the following links:

The content of this article is intended to provide a general
guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought
about your specific circumstances.

POPULAR ARTICLES ON: Technology from United States

Property Rights In NFTs Are In The Spotlight

Wiley Rein

Interest in non-fungible tokens (NFTs) — unique digital assets created and sold on blockchains — have exploded in the past year. Buyers have paid many millions for these digital goods…

The Merge Is Upon Us: What It Means For Ethereum

Proskauer Rose LLP

As of this writing, the Ethereum “Merge,” one of the most anticipated events in blockchain history, is finally expected to occur in September 2022. The “Merge” will shift the Ethereum blockchain…

Source: https://www.mondaq.com/unitedstates/fin-tech/1225176/doj-targets-cryptocurrency-fraud-report-cites-recent-crypto-crime-trends

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *