Thodex Crypto Exchange Founder Sentenced in Turkish Court

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Faruk Fatih Ozer, the founding father of Thodex, a defunct crypto trade based mostly in Turkey, was sentenced to 11,196 years in jail by a courtroom in Istanbul.

The choice got here in response to the abrupt collapse of Thodex in 2021, which affected an unlimited variety of its customers and raised issues over the steadiness and safety of cryptocurrency exchanges within the area.

Ozer’s Position in Thodex’ Collapse

Based in 2017 by Faruk Fatih Ozer, Thodex quickly grew in prominence inside the Turkish crypto panorama. Nonetheless, problems surfaced in 2021 when the platform ceased operations, main Ozer to go away Turkey for Albania.

The Istanbul courtroom, in its latest verdict, discovered Ozer and his two siblings responsible of a sequence of crimes, which included aggravated fraud, main a prison group, and cash laundering. In the course of the court proceedings, Ozer was quoted by the state-run Anadolu Company:

“I’m sensible sufficient to guide any establishment on Earth. That’s evident on this firm I established on the age of twenty-two. I wouldn’t have acted so amateurishly if this had been a prison group.”

Injury and Extradition

The precise magnitude of losses following Thodex’s cessation stays a topic of ongoing evaluation. The prosecutor’s preliminary paperwork point out losses to buyers totaling 356 million liras (round $13 million). Nonetheless, a number of Turkish media experiences recommend a lot bigger figures, some even reaching as much as $2 billion. Moreover, an unbiased examine by Chainalysis estimates the whole cryptocurrency misplaced at Thodex to be price $2.6 billion.

Following Thodex’s operational halt and the next fallout, Ozer’s relocation to Albania initiated a prolonged extradition course of. After in depth authorized proceedings, he was introduced again to Turkey earlier this yr, main as much as the latest courtroom ruling.

The sentencing of Ozer and his siblings displays the broader issues and challenges confronted by regulators and stakeholders within the quickly evolving cryptocurrency market, particularly within the context of making certain consumer safety and belief.

Disclaimer: This text is offered for informational functions solely. It’s not supplied or meant for use as authorized, tax, funding, monetary, or different recommendation.