⛓ Bitcoin stock exchange operator pleads guilty to securities fraud

The founder and operator of two shuttered crypto investment platforms including BitFunder, has pled guilty to securities fraud and obstruction of justice. 37-year-old Texan Jon Montroll aka "Ukyo" admitted to deceiving investors and the SEC during the operations and investigations of the exchange "WeChange" in Australia and securities investment platform BitFunder. Montroll failed to disclose a 2013 hack leading to the theft of 6000 Bitcoins ($BTC) from customers' funds from WeChange and attempted to conceal the hack. Additionally, Montroll was accussed of siphoning user funds and providing false documents. Montroll has pled guilty to one count of securities fraud and one count of obstruction of justice, each carrying a max penalty of 20 years in prison.