BitMEX Operator Appoints Compliance Head To Resolve Regulatory Issues

By RTTNews Staff Writer | Published: 10/13/2020 10:27 AM ET

100x Group, the holding group for HDR Global Trading Ltd., owner and operator of the Bitcoin Mercantile Exchange or BitMEX platform, has appointed Malcolm Wright as the chief compliance officer.

This is expected to enable the crypto derivatives exchange to effectively handle and resolve the issues arising from the recent legal filings and regulatory crackdown against it. This appointment will also help BitMEX in their move towards completion of the User Verification Programme and further enhance its compliance function.

While leading 100x Group's compliance efforts globally, Wright will report directly to Vivien Khoo, Interim Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer.

"For me, compliance is non-negotiable, and a prerequisite for exchanges to be embraced by regulators and institutional investors alike," said Wright.

Wright is a international speaker on a variety of related topics, in particular the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendations for Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs). He brings in an extensive background in compliance and anti-money laundering (AML).

Wright also sits on a number of international committees and currently chairs the Advisory Council and AML Working Group at Global Digital Finance, an industry-led initiative in defining codes of conduct and best practices for the virtual asset industry.

This appointment is in addition to the leadership changes made at 100x Group last week on the back of regulatory and legal issues at BitMEX.

The co-founders, CEO Arthur Hayes and CTO Samuel Reed, withdrew from all executive management responsibilities. Another Co-Founder Ben Delo will also not hold executive positions in the 100x Group, along with Hayes and Reed. Additionally, Greg Dwyer took leave of absence from his role as Head of Business Development. It also named Chief Operating Officer Vivien Khoo as the Interim CEO.

Hayes, Reed and Delo operate BitMEX's platform through a maze of corporate entities. These entities are HDR Global Trading Ltd., 100x Holding Ltd., ABS Global Trading Ltd., Shine Effort Inc Ltd., and HDR Global Services (Bermuda) Ltd. (BitMEX).

Hayes, Reed, Delo and Dwyer are facing jail term of five years after being indicted by the U.S. Attorney for the District of New York last week on federal charges of violating the Bank Secrecy Act and conspiracy to violate the Bank Secrecy Act.

Simultaneously, Hayes, Reed, Delo and the five related entities have also been charged by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for illegally operating an unregistered trading platform and for violating the anti-money laundering regulations.

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Article written by an RTT News Staff Writer, and posted on the RTT News.com website.

Article reposted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

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