Switzerland’s fiscal watchdog has cracked downwardly on operations of “E-Coin”, an alleged ‘fake’ cryptocurrency scam.
The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), the country’s fiscal markets regulator as well as watchdog has revealed the closure of iii dissever companies involved inwards issuing “E-Coin”, alleged past times the authorisation every bit a simulated cryptocurrency.
In an announcement, the watchdog revealed that ‘Quid Pro Quo Association’ had developed as well as begun issuing E-Coins since 2016. The company, working amongst Digital Trading AG as well as Marcelo Group AG, too launched an online trading platform for the E-Coins to endure traded as well as transferred. Since 2016, the iii companies raked inwards some 4 1 chiliad m Swiss francs (approx. $4.1 million) from hundreds of Swiss investors.
The authorisation wrote:
Via this platform, these iii legal entities accepted funds amounting to at to the lowest degree 4 1 chiliad m Swiss francs from several hundred users as well as operated virtual accounts for them inwards both legal tender as well as E-Coins.
As things stand, FINMA has seized as well as blocked assets worth some 2 1 chiliad m Swiss francs.
Not a Real Cryptocurrency
The authorisation notably distinguished E-Coin from decentralized, blockchain-based cryptocurrencies.
“Unlike existent cryptocurrencies, which are stored on distributed networks as well as usage blockchain technology, E-Coins were completely nether the providers’ command as well as stored locally on its servers,” the regulator revealed.
Apart from its investigation into E-Coin, FINMA too confirmed it was conducting 11 dissever investigations into “other presumably unauthorized describe organization models relating to such [fake] coins.’
Bitcoin-Friendly Swiss
The fiscal regulator has notably embraced bitcoin startups inwards the past times inwards granting an early ‘conditional approval’ to wallet provider Xapo to operate inwards the country. FINMA is notably tasked past times the country’s Federal Council to grant FinTech licenses for manufacture startups every bit a purpose of the country’s FinTech-friendly agenda.
In issuing a stern alarm virtually “unscrupulous cryptocurrency providers’, the watchdog added:
FINMA welcomes innovation, but when innovative describe organization models are misused for unauthorized activities, FINMA intervenes.
With its crackdown against E-Coin operators, FINMA has too launched police pull enforcement proceedings against those involved as well as has liquidated the assets of all iii companies.
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