DOJ Accuses KuCoin and Founders of AML Violations

According to officials from the Department of Justice (DOJ), KuCoin founders Chun Gan and Ke Tang are currently evading authorities as the DOJ revealed charges against the exchange on March 26.

The United States Justice Department has unveiled charges against KuCoin, a cryptocurrency exchange, and two of its founders, accusing them of colluding to run an unlicensed money transmitting business and breaching the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA).

In a statement released on March 26, the U.S. Department of Justice asserted that KuCoin’s founders, Chun Gan and Ke Tang, intentionally neglected to establish an Anti-Money Laundering program within the exchange, leading to its exploitation for illicit purposes such as money laundering and financing terrorism. Additionally, the company itself faces charges of operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business and violating the BSA.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams remarked that KuCoin and its founders actively concealed the significant presence of U.S. users on the platform. He emphasized that KuCoin capitalized on its substantial U.S. customer base to become one of the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchanges, facilitating billions of dollars in daily trades and trillions of dollars in annual trade volume.

Williams further emphasized that the defendants’ failure to implement even rudimentary anti-money laundering measures allowed KuCoin to operate clandestinely in the financial markets, providing a sanctuary for illegal money laundering activities.