Arthur Hayes, the co-founder and former chairman of BitMEX, asked the court not to sentence him to prison, but to allow him to travel and live freely abroad. He writes about Bloomberg.

According to the agency, Hayes’ lawyers have filed a request for parole with the court. In February 2022, the former head of the platform was found guilty of violating the US Bank Secrecy Act (BSA). The deal included prison terms of between 6 and 12 months.

According to the lawyers of the BitMEX co-founder, the ruling in this case sets a precedent that US regulators and authorities can use when prosecuting cryptocurrency exchanges.

“This is an important case that has already had exceptional and public impact on Mr Hayes’ personal life, as well as the business of BitMEX, of which he is a co-founder,” Bloomberg said, quoting a letter from lawyers.

In October 2020, the US Department of Justice filed charges of BSA violations against BitMEX co-founders Arthur Hayes, Ben Delo, Samuel Reed, and Greg Dwyer. Each faced up to five years in prison.

In parallel with the accusations from the Ministry of Justice, a lawsuit was filed against the stock exchange and its subsidiaries. CFTC. The defendants were Hayes, Reid and Delo.

Arrested in the USA, Reed was released on $5 million bail.

In the UK, Delo surrendered to US authorities in March 2021. Hayes flew from Singapore to Hawaii in April and had previously accepted the terms of voluntary surrender.

The court released them both on bail. For Hayes the amount was $10 million, and for Delo – $20 million Dwyer, who lives in Bermuda, agreed to the extradition in September.

The exchange filed a civil suit, agreeing to a $100 million fine and an independent audit by the CFTC.

At the end of 2021, Dwyer’s lawyers persuaded the court to adjourn the case to October 2022 due to insufficient time to prepare for the hearing.

As a reminder, in February 2022, BitMEX co-founder and former CTO Samuel Reed was also found guilty of violating the BSA.