- Nathaniel Chastain used his position to trade NFTs
- Thus, he earned about $ 57 thousand
- He was found guilty on three key counts, including insider trading.
- The court will announce the verdict on August 22
Yesterday, May 3, the trial of Nathaniel Chastain took place. The jury found the ex-OpenSea manager guilty on charges of insider trading, fraud and violation of AML laws.
In fact, this is the first such process in the context of crypto assets. The guilty verdict on it is of great importance, since it creates a precedent for judicial practice.
At the company, Chastain was responsible for selecting collections for further listing. He then bought some of these NFTs and then resold them in the market when the price went up.
Charges against him were brought in June last year. In August, he demanded that the case be closed in court, since the tokens are not classified as securities, therefore, they are not subject to the law on insider trading.
Despite all the tricks, the prosecutor’s office still insisted on the chosen wording. Later, after the start of the process, Chastain’s lawyer shifted the focus of the defense to the fact that his client allegedly did not know about the confidentiality of data about the NFT listing.
The prosecutor pointed to the practice of using anonymous accounts by the defendants. This shows that he was aware of the wrongfulness of his actions. Jury counted this is proof enough.
The final meeting is scheduled for August 22, at the same time the court will announce the verdict. Chastain faces up to 20 years in prison.