The office of New York Attorney General Letitia James accused the operator of the Bitfinex exchange and the Tether cryptocurrency, iFinex Inc. — in an attempt to hide “apparent losses of $850 million” in client and corporate funds. This is associated with the history of the so-called “stablecoin”.
According to Engadget, between March 2017 and March 2018, funds were transferred in the amount of $850 million to Crypto Capital Corp. This payment processor is based in Panama and appears to be the final link in the chain.
It is reported that after the money was transferred, Bitfinex lost access to the funds. At Crypto Capital Corp. stated that the money was seized by government agencies in Portugal, Poland and the United States, however, it seems that Bitfinex has reason not to trust this information.
Supposedly, the concept behind Tether is that a “stablecoin” is a cryptocurrency that relates one-to-one to the US dollar and is backed by US currency or other assets. According to The Wall Street Journal, the lack of an updated public audit has fueled speculation that the money was not seized but was being held in reserve.
Bitfinex also said the New York Attorney General's lawsuits were written in bad faith and were riddled with false statements. In particular, it was stated that the notorious $850 million was confiscated and is under protection. The exchange also stated that Bitfinex and Tether are financially stable, so there is nothing to worry about.
Source: 3dnews.ru