BitMEX was hit with a $100 million fine Wednesday by Manhattan federal judge Judge John G. Koeltl—the latest verdict against the cryptocurrency exchange in the years-long saga over money-laundering violations in the United States.
The exchange’s attorneys had argued that an earlier $110 million fine and previous guilty pleas were sufficient punishment for the violations that took place between 2015 and 2020, but Koeltl disagreed. Law360 first reported the news.
Founders Arthur Hayes and Benjamin Delo previously pled guilty in 2022 to similar charges, with each agreeing to a $10 million criminal fine. In a statement Wednesday, BitMEX pushed said the verdict represented a smaller penalty than previously sought by the U.S. government, but that it disagreed that a fine was necessary.
Editor’s note: This story is breaking and will be updated with additional details.
