Terraform Labs Founder Pleads Guilty To US$40 Billion Crypto Fraud

AI Summary

Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon pleaded guilty to two counts of cryptocurrency fraud in a US court. He misled investors about the stability of TerraUSD, claiming an algorithm maintained its value when he was secretly using a trading firm to manipulate the price. Kwon's scheme inflated Luna's value to US$50 billion, leading investors to buy Terraform products. He agreed to an US$80 million fine and a crypto ban as part of a US$4.55 billion settlement with the SEC. He faces a 12-year prison sentence and will be transferred to South Korea after serving half his term in the US.