Gotbit Founder Forfeits $23M in Crypto Market Manipulation Plea Deal

In Brief:

Gotbit founder Aleksei Andriunin agreed to forfeit $23 million in a plea deal over crypto market manipulation charges.
He avoids prison time but faces three years of supervised release with a ban on crypto activities.

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Gotbit founder Aleksei Andriunin has reached a plea agreement with U.S. authorities, surrendering $23 million in crypto assets tied to market manipulation. Prosecutors accused Gotbit of inflating token prices through wash trading, deceiving investors into buying at fraudulently inflated values.

Andriunin, who was extradited from Portugal, originally faced up to 20 years in prison on wire fraud and conspiracy charges. Instead, the plea deal spares him additional fines beyond forfeiture, while imposing three years of supervised release, prohibiting him from engaging in any crypto-related activities.

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