Crypto exchange Huobi is reportedly suing a former executive accused of raking in $5 million in Tether (USDT) by secretly trading against a company account under his control.
The Financial Times reports Chen Boliang engaged in the illegal trading scheme between February and March 2020 while he was still a senior manager in Huobi’s institutional client’s department.
The lawsuit claims Chen set up a Huobi retail account using his father’s name and gave it a $20-million credit line from the exchange. He then used it to trade against a corporate account that is also under his supervision.
The 34-year-old allegedly made $5 million worth of USDT from the illicit trades. Chen is facing a total of seven counts for accessing Huobi’s computer systems and dealing with the proceeds of the fraudulent trading activities.
Huobi says it terminated Chen’s employment in May 2020.
“We have no further comments pertaining to the charges against Mr. Boliang Chen and believe in the administration of justice by the HK Special Administrative Region.”
It is unclear how the scheme was discovered, but the exchange reported Chen to Hong Kong police in April 2020, and he was arrested the following month. A charge sheet shows that the former executive is out on a $25,000 bail.
Chen’s case is scheduled for a preliminary inquiry before a magistrate next week to determine if there is enough evidence to warrant a trial.
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