Dubai's VARA Cracks Down On Crypto Exchange OPNX, Fines Company, Founders $2.8M

Dubai's Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) imposed a hefty fine of nearly $2.8 million on cryptocurrency exchange OPNX and its founders.

OPNX, established by Kyle Davies and Su Zhu, the minds behind the unsuccessful hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC), had previously faced VARA's scrutiny in May.

The duo attracted criticism for launching OPNX following 3AC's collapse.

This new venture enabled investors to trade bankruptcy claims for firms like FTX FTT/USD and CoinFLEX.

Despite claims from trading entities asserting significant investments in OPNX, the exchange reported a mere $2 in trades during its initial 24 hours.

Furthermore, OPNX refuted these claims of significant stakeholder involvement.

For committing a Market Offense, VARA slapped OPNX with a fine of 10,000,000 United Arab Emirates dirhams (equivalent to $2.7 million) based on regulations established earlier this year.

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As per the regulatory notice, this fine, levied on May 2, "remains unpaid at the time of publication of this notice."

In addition to this, VARA imposed separate penalties totaling around $54,000 on the founders, including Davies, Zhu, Mark Lamb and OPNX CEO Leslie Lamb citing non-compliance with the marketing and advertising standards set by the authority.

The notice confirmed that these fines have been settled in full by the concerned individuals.

The regulator warned of additional measures, encompassing further fines, to ensure the settlement of the outstanding penalties.

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