ASIC Slaps Former CEO of Crypto Exchange Mine Digital with Fraud Charges

The hammer has come down on ex-Aussie exchange Mine Digital after the platform allegedly stole over AU $2m from an unsuspecting customer. After a lengthy investigation, Australia’s financial watchdog the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) charged Mine Digital’s CEO with fraud. If ASIC’s case is successful, the ex-CEO, Grant Colthup, could face up to twenty years in a Queensland prison.

Related: ABC Report: Aussies Targeted for Crypto Scams as “Easy Prey” 

Mine Digital Owned Barely 10% of Customer’s Crypto Upon 2022 Collapse

The Mine Digital exchange collapsed in September 2022 – about two months before the fatal FTX liquidation – with over $24 million supposedly owed to creditors. However, a post-crash investigation revealed that the exchange’s custodian and parent company, ACCE, held a mere AU $30k worth of crypto.

The specific transaction that left Colthup in hot water came in July 2022, when a customer deposited AU $2.2m to the Mine Digital exchange. The plan was for the cash to be converted to Bitcoin – which at the time was hovering around the AU $30k price point.

However, the customer never received their BTC.

Fraud Case to Take Place in December, Potentially AU $6m Lost

According to ASIC’s investigation, the money paid from the customer was instead used to buy cryptocurrency and pay off certain company debts. 

To make matters even worse, if the transaction had been completed and the customer held their Bitcoin, their portfolio would now be worth approximately AU $6 million.

The fraud case will be heard on December 16th.