BCGAME - Free 5BTC Daily Bonus!DeFi crypto loan protocols that pay users an above-market interest rate for their deposits of digital assets have been banned in New York, the state attorney general announced on Monday, and an investigation is underway into the operations. from two of the largest platforms.
"Cryptocurrency platforms must follow the law, just like everyone else, which is why we are now ordering the closure of two crypto companies and forcing another three to respond to questions immediately," Attorney General James said in a statement. the press. "My office is responsible for ensuring that industry players do not take advantage of unsuspecting investors."
Attached to the press release, NYAG posted two of the letters sent asking for more information. While some of the contents of the letters were drafted, the names of the files on the NYAG website revealed that they were sent to Nexus and Celsius.
As of now, these letters are simply requests for information and are not subpoenas, so companies are under no obligation to respond.
Among the requested information is “all contracts, agreements or other communications with Tether Limited or other affiliated persons or entities” and “a list of transactions by or through its platform or service which, in whole or in part, includes USDT, including all relevant transaction details. ”
Tether lent Celsius $1 billion dollars backed by crypto-collaterals.
NYAG did not specify whether this ban and investigation is the result of consumer complaints against the aforementioned companies.
NYAG's announcement comes days after Celsius closed a $400 million round valuing the company at $3,25 billion. The round was led by the Caisse de dépot et placement du Québec (CDPQ), the Quebec province pension fund and one of the country's largest institutional investors, with nearly $323 billion of assets under management. Celsius has nearly $20 billion in assets under management. CEO Alex Mashinsky said, “The 8,8% we pay on stablecoins is the real value of the US dollar. It's not 0,1%, which is what JP Morgan or Wells Fargo or other people say you should earn with your money. ”
This is not the first time Celsius has faced state scrutiny. Earlier this year, the company received cease and desist orders from authorities in Texas and New Jersey. Another prominent centralized lending platform, BlockFi, faced similar issues from regulators.
Celsius has not responded to a request for comment so far. Its CEL token has dropped 7%, according to data from CoinGecko.
Nexus has denied serving New York State entirely.
