Coinsquare to Pay $2.2 Million Penalty for Market Manipulation

The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) has fined crypto exchange Coinsquare and its executives a $2.2 million penalty in a settlement.

In its statement of allegations, the OSC accused the company and its execs of using ‘wash trades’ to inflate trading volumes. In addition, the company also lied about it. In the course of its investigation, the OSC found out that in December 2019, an employee who tried to expose the illegal operation was suspended and later terminated.

The top execs mentioned in the allegation were Virgile Rostand, founder and Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Cole Diamond, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), and Felix Mazer, Chief Compliance Officer (CCO).

The $2.2 million settlement is as a result of the company’s admission of guilt. Last Friday, the execs expressed interest in a settlement with the help of major capital market regulators. As part of the settlement, Diamond and Rostand agreed to step down from their current positions and pay $1 million and $900,000 penalty fees respectively. They were also banned from participating in Coinsquare and the crypto industry for a period of three years.

Mazer, for playing a minor role, paid only $50,000 and received a one-year ban. The company as an entity paid $300,000.

This is OSC’s first indictment against a crypto exchange platform in Canada.

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