Abra, CEO Barhydt settle with 25 US states over licensing violations
Other states can join in the settlement, which will see up to $82.1 million returned to customers.
Cryptocurrency platform Abra, its associated companies and CEO William Barhydt reached a settlement with 25 U.S. states for operating without the appropriate licenses. The settlement comes after a working group of regulators from eight states led an investigation into the company.
Financial regulators from Arkansas, Connecticut, Georgia, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, Vermont, and Washington determined that Abra operated an unlicensed mobile app for buying, selling and trading crypto.
Washington led the group in negotiating the settlement, according to a statement by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS). Under the settlement, the states will not require penalties of $250,000 each to cover costs of customer repayment. Up to $82.1 million and all remaining virtual assets will be returned to Abra customers in the settling states.
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Author: Derek Andersen
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