SEC Files Criminal Complaint Against Bitkub Over Alleged False Regulatory Reports

Bitkub, once Thailand's largest digital asset exchange and creator of KUB Coin, faces its biggest governance challenge yet. The company was at the height of its success in late 2021, poised to become the country's undisputed crypto champion.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a criminal complaint against Bitkub Online Co Ltd and two former directors for allegedly submitting false regulatory reports following a $54.6 million cyber-attack in May 2021.

Hackers withdrew digital assets across 16 cryptocurrencies from Bitkub, with losses estimated at 1.7 billion baht. Although customers were eventually made whole after the company replaced the stolen assets by October 31, 2021, regulators claim Bitkub failed to disclose the incident properly in its daily net capital reports for more than five months.

Sakolkorn Sakavee, founder and former chairman of Bitkub Capital Group Holdings, accepted sole responsibility for altering regulatory filings without informing fellow directors or employees. He feared triggering panic withdrawals, a collapse in cryptocurrency prices, and a 'bank run' that could have destroyed the exchange.