Crypto exchange Bitkub targeted by Thai SEC with wash trading claims

2022 has proven to be a regulatory disaster for Thailand’s largest crypto exchange as it has faced multiple enforcement actions and fines worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Thailand’s largest crypto exchange Bitkub has come under regulatory scrutiny from the country’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over falsifying and creating artificial trading volume on its platform.

Thai SEC ordered legal action against the crypto exchange and two individuals alleging the crypto platform was involved in wash trading, a process where investors buy and sell the same assets at the same time in order to manipulate the market by inflating volumes.

The latest enforcement action against the leading Thai crypto exchange would be the second penalty for the crypto exchange within three months. Bitkub Capital Group Holdings Chairman Sakolkorn Sakavee was fined $216,000 and banned from managerial roles in the firm for a year earlier in July this year.

According to an official statement by the SEC dated Sept. 27, the regulatory body has filed a lawsuit against the crypto exchange and the two individuals, seeking a civil fine and expenses of around $634,000 and a six-month trading prohibition for the duo.

Cointelegraph didn’t get a response from Bitkub at press time.

Bitkub is among the top crypto exchanges in Thailand, boasting daily trading volumes of millions. However, the crypto exchange has also been at the receiving end of regulatory actions over the past few months. The exchange’s chief technical officer Samret Wajanasathian was fined 8,530,383 baht ($234,000) towards the end of August, on charges of insider trading.

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The crypto exchange also faced a major setback last month when Thailand’s oldest bank Siam Commercial Bank scrapped its $500 million funding plans.

Thailand was once seen as one of the most crypto-progressive nations in the world, thanks to a regulated crypto market and tax breaks for crypto traders. However, several leading crypto exchanges have faced regulatory and compliance challenges in the country from time to time. Even the likes of Binance and Huobi have struggled with regulatory compliance.