Latest news with #TerraUSD
The Hill
29 minutes ago
- Business
- The Hill
Crypto mogul Do Kwon, known as ‘the cryptocurrency king,' pleads guilty to fraud charges
NEW YORK (AP) — South Korean cryptocurrency mogul Do Kwon pleaded guilty on Tuesday to two fraud charges arising from the $40 billion collapse of a cryptocurrency ecosystem that had promised investors their money was safe. Kwon, 33, dubbed by some as 'the cryptocurrency king,' entered the plea in Manhattan federal court. According to a plea agreement signed by Kwon and prosecutors, the government said it will not seek a prison term of more than 12 years as long as Kwon complies with the deal's terms, even though federal sentencing guidelines would have recommended a prison term of about 25 years. Sentencing is set for Dec. 11. Authorities said investors worldwide lost money in the Singapore crypto firm Terraform Labs' $40 billion cryptocurrency crash. Kwon co-founded the company in 2018. The May 2022 collapse came after the company claimed that TerraUSD was a reliable 'stablecoin.' TerraUSD was designed as a 'stablecoin,' a currency that is pegged to stable assets such as the dollar to prevent drastic fluctuations in prices. However, around $40 billion in market value was erased for the holders of TerraUSD and its floating sister currency, Luna, after the stablecoin plunged far below its $1 peg. Kwon was extradited to the United States on Dec. 31 from Montenegro after his March 23, 2023, arrest while traveling on a false passport in Europe. As part of his plea to one count of conspiring to commit commodities fraud, securities fraud and wire fraud and a second count of wire fraud, Kwon also agreed to forfeit over $19 million, an amount that authorities said reflected ill-gotten proceeds. He'll also lose his interest in Terraform and its cryptocurrencies. His lawyer, Sean Hecker, said the plea meant that Kwon had accepted responsibility for making false and misleading statements to investors. In a statement, the lawyer said his client 'takes responsibility for misleading the Terra community.' In a news release, U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said Kwon 'used the technological promise and investment euphoria around cryptocurrency to commit one of the largest frauds in history.'
Winnipeg Free Press
29 minutes ago
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
Crypto mogul Do Kwon, known as ‘the cryptocurrency king,' pleads guilty to fraud charges
NEW YORK (AP) — South Korean cryptocurrency mogul Do Kwon pleaded guilty on Tuesday to two fraud charges arising from the $40 billion collapse of a cryptocurrency ecosystem that had promised investors their money was safe. Kwon, 33, dubbed by some as 'the cryptocurrency king,' entered the plea in Manhattan federal court. According to a plea agreement signed by Kwon and prosecutors, the government said it will not seek a prison term of more than 12 years as long as Kwon complies with the deal's terms, even though federal sentencing guidelines would have recommended a prison term of about 25 years. Sentencing is set for Dec. 11. Authorities said investors worldwide lost money in the Singapore crypto firm Terraform Labs' $40 billion cryptocurrency crash. Kwon co-founded the company in 2018. The May 2022 collapse came after the company claimed that TerraUSD was a reliable 'stablecoin.' TerraUSD was designed as a 'stablecoin,' a currency that is pegged to stable assets such as the dollar to prevent drastic fluctuations in prices. However, around $40 billion in market value was erased for the holders of TerraUSD and its floating sister currency, Luna, after the stablecoin plunged far below its $1 peg. Kwon was extradited to the United States on Dec. 31 from Montenegro after his March 23, 2023, arrest while traveling on a false passport in Europe. As part of his plea to one count of conspiring to commit commodities fraud, securities fraud and wire fraud and a second count of wire fraud, Kwon also agreed to forfeit over $19 million, an amount that authorities said reflected ill-gotten proceeds. He'll also lose his interest in Terraform and its cryptocurrencies. His lawyer, Sean Hecker, said the plea meant that Kwon had accepted responsibility for making false and misleading statements to investors. In a statement, the lawyer said his client 'takes responsibility for misleading the Terra community.' In a news release, U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said Kwon 'used the technological promise and investment euphoria around cryptocurrency to commit one of the largest frauds in history.' He said investors around the world suffered billions of dollars in losses.
Sydney Morning Herald
an hour ago
- Business
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘What I did was wrong': 33-year-old crypto mogul pleads guilty over $61 billion collapse
Terraform co-founder Do Kwon pleaded guilty to charges in a US fraud prosecution tied to the $US40 billion ($61 billion) collapse of the TerraUSD stablecoin in 2022. Kwon pleaded guilty to conspiracy and wire fraud under an agreement with prosecutors at a hearing in New York on Tuesday. The 33-year-old, dressed in a yellow prison jumpsuit, also agreed to forfeit $US19.3 million and some properties as part of the plea deal. 'I knowingly agreed with others to defraud, and did in fact defraud, purchasers of cryptocurrencies issued by my company, Terraform Labs,' Kwon said, reading from a statement. 'What I did was wrong and I want to apologise for my conduct. I take full responsibility.' Kwon was charged in both South Korea and the US in connection with the implosion of Singapore-based Terraform's TerraUSD, which shook the crypto world in 2022 and helped trigger the meltdown of cryptocurrency exchange FTX. The guilty plea averts a trial set for next year before US District Judge Paul Engelmayer. Loading He was charged in 2023 and was extradited to the US in January, after spending almost two years in Montenegro, where he'd been arrested and convicted of using a phony passport while a fugitive from charges in his native South Korea. US prosecutors said the longest sentence they will seek under the plea deal is 12 years. The maximum US sentences are five years for the conspiracy count and 20 years for the wire fraud charge. Sentencing is scheduled for December 11. He had faced nine charges under the indictment.
The Age
an hour ago
- Business
- The Age
‘What I did was wrong': 33-year-old crypto mogul pleads guilty over $61 billion collapse
Terraform co-founder Do Kwon pleaded guilty to charges in a US fraud prosecution tied to the $US40 billion ($61 billion) collapse of the TerraUSD stablecoin in 2022. Kwon pleaded guilty to conspiracy and wire fraud under an agreement with prosecutors at a hearing in New York on Tuesday. The 33-year-old, dressed in a yellow prison jumpsuit, also agreed to forfeit $US19.3 million and some properties as part of the plea deal. 'I knowingly agreed with others to defraud, and did in fact defraud, purchasers of cryptocurrencies issued by my company, Terraform Labs,' Kwon said, reading from a statement. 'What I did was wrong and I want to apologise for my conduct. I take full responsibility.' Kwon was charged in both South Korea and the US in connection with the implosion of Singapore-based Terraform's TerraUSD, which shook the crypto world in 2022 and helped trigger the meltdown of cryptocurrency exchange FTX. The guilty plea averts a trial set for next year before US District Judge Paul Engelmayer. Loading He was charged in 2023 and was extradited to the US in January, after spending almost two years in Montenegro, where he'd been arrested and convicted of using a phony passport while a fugitive from charges in his native South Korea. US prosecutors said the longest sentence they will seek under the plea deal is 12 years. The maximum US sentences are five years for the conspiracy count and 20 years for the wire fraud charge. Sentencing is scheduled for December 11. He had faced nine charges under the indictment.
NDTV
an hour ago
- Business
- NDTV
Disgraced Crypto Mogul Do Kwon Pleads Guilty To Fraud Over $40 Billion Terraform Collapse
South Korean cryptocurrency specialist Do Kwon pleaded guilty to fraud charges in front of a New York judge on Tuesday following his firm's multi-billion-dollar bankruptcy, court filings showed. Do Kwon, who founded Terraform and nurtured two cryptocurrencies central to the bankruptcy, had faced nine counts in a superseding indictment filed by prosecutors in January 2025 to which he initially pleaded not guilty. The fallen mogul changed his plea in a hearing before Southern District of New York judge Paul Engelmayer, and will be sentenced on December 11, the docket showed. He was extradited last year from Montenegro to the United States for his role in a fraud linked to his company's failure, which wiped out about $40 billion of investors' money and shook global crypto markets. The crypto tycoon was arrested in March 2023 at the airport in Podgorica, the Montenegrin capital, while preparing to board a flight to Dubai, in possession of a fake Costa Rican passport. Before his arrest in the tiny Balkan nation, he had been on the run for months, fleeing South Korea and later Singapore, when his company went bankrupt in 2022. Do Kwon's Terraform Labs created a cryptocurrency called TerraUSD that was marketed as a "stablecoin", a token that is pegged to stable assets such as the US dollar to prevent drastic fluctuations. Do Kwon successfully marketed them as the next big thing in crypto, attracting billions in investments and global hype. Media reports in South Korea described him as a "genius". But despite billions in investments, TerraUSD and its sister token Luna went into a death spiral in May 2022. Experts said Kwon had set up a glorified pyramid scheme, in which many investors lost their life savings. He left South Korea before the crash and spent months on the run. Cryptocurrencies have come under increasing scrutiny from regulators after a string of controversies in recent years, including the high-profile collapses of exchanges.
