Cryptocurrency futures market CEO pleads guilty to violating Bank Secrecy Act

MIAMI – The former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Digitex Futures Exchange (Digitex Futures) pleaded guilty today in federal court to willfully causing Digitex Futures to violate the Bank Secrecy Act by failing to establish and implement an anti-money-laundering program.

From 2018 through April 2022, Adam Colin Todd, 50, illegally operated Digitex Futures, an online futures exchange company, as an unregistered futures commission merchant within the United States. Todd, as CEO of Digitex Futures, illegally sold and offered futures contracts to customers of Digitex Futures in the United States. Todd willfully failed to establish, implement and maintain an adequate anti-money-laundering program, including an adequate know-your-customer program. Todd publicly stated that he refused to implement know-your-customer policies for Digitex Futures. 

A sentencing hearing has not been scheduled yet. Todd faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines along with other mitigating, aggravating, and statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.

FBI Miami investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Trevor Jones is prosecuting the case. 

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 23-cr-20478.

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