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Four more arrests have been made in the ongoing investigation into Tokyo-based crypto exchange JPEX. The new arrests bring the total number of detentions in the case to a whopping 18.
The latest detentions have been made by officials from Japan’s local police department, the Metropolitan Police Department, as part of its ongoing investigation into the exchange. The investigation began in October 2019 when JPEX was found to have suspended its activities suddenly and without prior notice.
As previously reported, the charges against the suspects include embezzlement and breach of trust, as the exchange was found to have supposedly misappropriated a significant amount of customers’ funds.
According to reports, the Tokyo exchange is believed to have lost approximately 50 billion yen ($450 million) in customer funds, and its management team has claimed to have been unable to secure the necessary funds to repay its customers.
At this time, it is unclear if the four new arrests are related to JPEX, but an official police statement has requested the public for any information they might have pertaining to the matter.
The exchange’s collapse has caused a significant stir in Japan’s crypto industry, and local lawmakers have subsequently proposed a series of measures aimed at strengthening the country’s existing crypto regulations.
This includes increasing the transparency of cryptocurrency exchanges and establishing a licensing system via an industry self-regulatory organization. This could help protect users by verifying the legitimacy of exchanges operating in the country, as well as providing them with certain guarantees.
These measures could also help to prevent a situation similar to JPEX happening again in the future.