Join Our Telegram channel to stay up to date on breaking news coverage
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) will join the long list of agencies probing the mysterious collapse of the Canadian cryptocurrency exchange QuadrigaCX.
Victims should be identified and assisted
The US-based agencies are looking for information on customers of the Canadian exchange and provide them with all the necessary assistance. The FBI is investigating QuadrigaCX case. The popular cryptocurrency exchanges went bust after the death of its founder, who was the only person with access to their cold wallets. Apparently, the exchange held all of its assets in these cold wallets and decided to shut shop soon after the founder’s death.
The Internal Service-Criminal Investigation, the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section of the Department of Justice and the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia are other US agency’s that are investigating the QuadrigaCX case.
What is happening with Quadriga?
Earlier this year, QuadrigaCX stopped operating, leaving around 115,000 of its customers locked out of their systems. These customers are collectively owed C$260 million (around $195 million) in cash and cryptocurrencies. Quadriga is currently undergoing bankruptcy proceedings in Canada. The FBI is asking users if they provided any identifying information to the Canadian exchange while opening accounts. They are also being enquired about the use of US-based financial institutions while making any transfers.
A statement from the agency reads that the IRS-CI and FBI are legally required to identify the victims of federal crimes and investigate these cases. They must also provide victims with information, resources and assistance services.
The Ontario Securities Commission said in February that it was also enquiring the Quadriga case because of the potential harm to Ontario investors. However, it hasn’t made any public comments about it as of now. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the federal police agency of the country said that it was aware of the allegations against the company. However, it did not publicly notify if it was investigating the case.
After shutting shop, Quadriga was under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) protection before ultimately filing for bankruptcy. It said that it could not access $136 million in cryptocurrencies and another $53 million in fiat held by various third-party payment processors. Ernst and Young were tasked to oversee the proceedings of the company. However, the company suggested that there are only remote chances of the company restructuring and emerging out of creditors’ protection.
EY will begin selling off the company’s assets to recover some funds.
Read more:
Join Our Telegram channel to stay up to date on breaking news coverage
