Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has recently requested the government for restitution of an estimated amount of $470,000 to cover the costs and fees of the investigation into former employee Ishan Wahi and his brother Nikhil for alleged insider trading and wire fraud. Both parties were looked into by the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The amount of payment proposed by Coinbase falls under the Mandatory Victim Restitution Act which states that victims are to be compensated for the expenses and losses resulting from involvements in a case. Of the amount, $400,000 would cover the grand jury subpoenas issued to Coinbase with 65 requests on documents and information asked by the DOJ. The remaining $60,000 would cover the wages of the employees who have to work alongside and assist the Special Investigation and Security team of the DOJ.

The Wahi brothers and Sameer Ramani have allegedly traded across 25 cryptocurrency assets on Coinbase between June 2021 and April 2022, resulting in a profit of over $1 million. Ishan Wahi's sentencing will take place on May 9 while Nikhil has been jailed for 10 months in January, this year.

The SEC charged suspicious activity of the brothers on trading securities, which both parties - being the brothers and Coinbase - denied. Regardless, the SEC requested for an opposition deadline of June 15 before the two parties could hold negotiations. This was accepted and the Wahis now have until July 15 to respond to the SEC's request.

Coinbase, being one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the US, showed restrains and responsibility to handle this case and it is also an example of how the token market is transitioning from a high-risk to a low-risk status. The current scenario also gives an insight on how regulators in the crypto space will handle similar cases in the future.



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