Bulgarian Prosecutor's Office congratulates US regulators on success achieved in the inquiry into Nexo

The Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Bulgaria congratulated the US regulatory authorities for the success achieved in the inquiry into the activities of a cryptocurrency trading company, the owners of which are also under investigation in Bulgaria, the spokesperson of the Prosecutor General, Siyka Mileva, said in a statement on January 20. "I understand the media's interest in the case, which we announced ten days ago was a large-scale investigation not only for us in Bulgaria, but also beyond our borders. The information from the recent hours only confirms this", Siyka Mileva added.

According to her, the settlement reached between the company Nexo, registered in 2018 in the Cayman Islands, and the competent regulatory authorities of the United States is indicative of the fact that the persons under investigation have admitted their guilt to the regulatory authorities, namely that they offered financial and banking services without registration, circumventing and violating investor protection rules.

The company agreed to voluntarily pay a total fine of USD 45 million for failing to register in the United States to trade cryptocurrency in the proper manner under the Securities Act. The company will cease operations with respect to all U.S. investors and leave the U.S. market entirely, the chief prosecutor’s spokesperson added.

Crypto Lender Nexo agrees to pay $45 million to US Regulators

Siyka Mileva explains that the investigation in Bulgaria is about an alleged organised criminal group established to commit financial crimes, including "money laundering", providing banking and financial services without a license, computer fraud and tax crimes.

A request for legal assistance was sent to the USA at the end of 2022 in connection with the pre-trial proceedings initiated in Bulgaria. Requests for legal assistance and European investigation orders are being prepared and are to be sent to other countries in order to gather all the evidence necessary to clarify the overall factual situation with regard to the subject matter of the evidence in the case.

"The work on the pre-trial proceedings continues, and I would like to stress that it is in close cooperation with our foreign partners. The pre-trial proceedings have received numerous complaints from British citizens alleging that they were victims of fraud by Nexo. In conclusion, I would like to congratulate, on behalf of the Public Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Bulgaria, the US regulatory authorities for the success achieved in their inquiry into the activities of Nexo, the owners of which are Bulgarian citizens. I would like to take this opportunity to express our readiness for active cooperation between the Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Bulgaria and the US institutions in order to achieve the common partnership goals of Bulgaria and the United States in upholding Euro-Atlantic values and the rule of law," Siyka Mileva further stated.

Nexo reaches landmark resolution with U.S. Regulators