Hong Kong regulator warns investors against using crypto exchange MEXC

The reason was that the platform did not have a license to operate in the local market

15.03.2024 - 14:10

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2 min

What’s new? The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has issued an investor warning against crypto exchange MEXC, listing it as a suspicious platform for trading virtual assets. Officials wrote that MEXC, which actively promotes its services to Hong Kong investors, did not apply to the SFC for a license to operate in the local market.

The SFC’s statement

What else is known? Under the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Ordinance, it is an offense to operate a crypto exchange in Hong Kong without a license, officials warned. They emphasized that they “will not hesitate to take enforcement action against unlicensed platforms where appropriate.”

The SFC warned investors against trading virtual assets on unregulated exchanges, noting that they risked losing their entire investment if such a platform ceased operations, went bankrupt, or was hacked.

A day earlier, the regulator published a similar warning regarding the crypto exchange Bybit. Also on February 9, a number of phishing websites mimicking MEXC to steal investors’ funds were included in the list of suspicious platforms.

In January, India’s fintech agency accused a number of global platforms, including MEXC, of failing to comply with anti-money laundering laws and demanded that MEXC block their websites. The MEXC app has since disappeared from the App Store in India.

Late last year, X users reported freezing and seizing funds on MEXC due to “abnormal trading activity.”

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