Former Coinbase Product Manager Pleads Not Guilty to Insider Trading
A former Coinbase product manager has pleaded not guilty to insider trading.
According to the Reuters news agency, 32-year-old Ishan Vakhi pleaded not guilty on Wednesday at a hearing on charges of fraud using electronic means, which allegedly occurred while working on the Coinbase crypto exchange
In an indictment filed on July 21 in New York, the Justice Department charged Vahey with electronic communications fraud and conspiracy to commit electronic fraud in connection with an insider trading scheme
Separately, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged Vakhi with insider trading on the same day. According to the SEC statement, Vakhi allegedly shared the Coinbase listing announcements in advance with his brother Nikhil Vakhi and friend Samir Ramani. Nikhil Vakhi and Ramani then allegedly used this insider knowledge to trade before the ads were published, and received more than $1.1 million in profit.
The Securities and Exchange Commission alleges that Ishan Vahi, an Indian citizen who received a work visa to the United States, used an international phone number to transmit information about insider trading through phone calls and text messages, according to the statement.
Ishan allegedly shared insider information prior to the release of at least 14 different Coinbase listing announcements for more than 25 different cryptocurrencies.
The Ministry of Justice said in a statement that:
"As part of the insider trading scheme, Ishan Vakhi violated his obligations to trust Coinbase"
According to the indictment, the brothers Vakhi and Ramani also allegedly "took numerous steps to avoid detection by law enforcement agencies" by moving their cryptocurrencies through several different Ethereum wallets and even wallets registered in other people's names.
In a press release at the time of the charges, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams stated the following:
"Today's charges are yet another reminder that Web3 is not a law-free zone."
The Justice Department also alleged in its indictment that Ishan Wahi "purchased a one-way air ticket to another country in an unsuccessful attempt to flee the United States."
Although the Vakhi brothers are arrested, Ramani's whereabouts are unknown.
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