Arthur Hayes Ready to ‚F*ck Some Sh*t Up‘ With His New Venture

• Arthur Hayes, one of the founders of BitMEX, is preparing to increase his public presence with his new venture Maelstrom.
• Previously, Hayes was hit with troubles after authorities accused BitMEX of lax KYC policy and money laundering.
• He entered a plea agreement which reduced the maximum possible sentence from 5 years to 6-12 months, and is currently serving time in US District Court.

Arthur Hayes Ventures into Public Life with Maelstrom

Arthur Hayes, one of the founders of derivatives exchange BitMEX, has declared that he is ready to become „more public“ about his family office known as Maelstrom. In a post on LinkedIn, he stated that Akshat Vaidya, Head of Investments for Maelstrom and formerly Vice President at BitMEX for three years prior to joining Maelstrom will be attending conferences around the world.

Troubles at Previous Firm BitMEX

BitMEX had previously been in trouble due to accusations that its lax know-your-customer (KYC) policies enabled illegal activities such as money laundering and sanctions dodging. In October 2020, co-founders Arthur Hayes, Samuel Reed, Ben Delo and Gregory Dwyer were charged by both Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). The firm was fined $100 million while the four individuals were ordered to pay a total of $40 million in fines.

Plea Agreement Reached

Hayes entered a plea agreement which lowered sentencing guidelines from up to five years per offense to six to twelve months in prison. He began serving this sentence at US District Court for Southern District of New York in May 2020 after turning himself over voluntarily in Hawaii earlier that month with his mother’s support for an $11 million bond.

New Investment Rounds With Elixir

Alongside investors FalconX, Commonwealth OP Crypto and ChapterOne, Hayes took part in a seed round raising $2.1 million for decentralized market maker Elixir which was revealed publicly this January 2021.

„Ready To Turn The Page“ On Past Events

After predicting an upcoming financial depression recently, Hayes expressed his readiness „to turn the page“ on past events during court proceedings relating to his previous firm BitMEX prior to greater involvement in public life through Maelstrom investments headed by Akshat Vaidya globally.