TechFlow news, October 31 — According to CoinDesk, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that Liu Zhou, founder of MyTrade, has pleaded guilty in a recent market manipulation investigation targeting multiple cryptocurrency exchanges, becoming the first defendant to do so. Liu Zhou admitted to manipulating markets through spoofing and wash trading across several crypto exchanges.
According to DOJ filings, the 39-year-old Liu Zhou holds dual Chinese and Canadian citizenship. His company, MyTrade MM, publicly claimed it could conduct "buy and sell self-trading within the same second," manipulating markets via "pump and dump" schemes. Prosecutors stated the firm artificially inflated token prices by fabricating trading volume, profiting from losses suffered by unsuspecting investors.
In the same case, Filipp Veselov, CEO of another exchange CLS Global, said the company has proactively reached out to U.S. regulators, expressing willingness to improve its business practices and engage in constructive dialogue. The investigation also involves several other exchanges including Gotbit and ZM Quant. Liu Zhou is scheduled to be sentenced in federal court early next year.
