BitMEX Founder Ben Delo Accused of Turning Crypto Exchange into Money Laundering Platform

Ben Delo's recent £36m donation to Reform UK has sparked questions about his past involvement in cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX. The platform, co-founded by Delo in 2014, was accused of being a 'magnet for money laundering and criminal activity' by US prosecutors.

Delo pleaded guilty to one offense under the Bank Secrecy Act, but other allegations were not tested at trial. Prosecutors claimed that BitMEX's lax customer verification requirements made it difficult to detect illicit transactions.

The company processed trillions of dollars in transactions during this period, with users only required to provide an email address for verification. Delo and his co-founders each withdrew between $100m and $150m in dividends between 2014 and 2020.

Delo's lawyers disputed the allegations, stating that their client was not involved in compliance-related activities and that the prosecutors' claims were 'unproven'.