TLDR
- President Trump pardoned BitMEX co-founders Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Delo, and Samuel Reed
- The three executives had pleaded guilty to violating the Bank Secrecy Act for failing to implement proper KYC/AML measures
- Hayes received 2 years probation, Delo 30 months, and Reed 18 months, plus $10 million fines each
- BitMEX was fined $100 million in 2021 for regulatory violations
- The pardons were signed Thursday (March 27, 2025) but not immediately publicized
President Donald Trump has pardoned the three co-founders of cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX who previously pleaded guilty to violating U.S. anti-money laundering laws, the White House confirmed on Friday, March 28.
Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Delo, and Samuel Reed received full presidential pardons on Thursday, according to a White House official. The pardons were not immediately announced to the public.
The three executives founded BitMEX in 2014, with Hayes serving as CEO. The Seychelles-based platform became a major player in cryptocurrency derivatives trading, focusing on perpetual contracts and futures.
In October 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice charged the co-founders with violating the Bank Secrecy Act. Prosecutors claimed BitMEX advertised itself as a place where customers could trade virtually anonymously.
The platform allegedly failed to implement basic know-your-customer (KYC) protocols. These measures are required by law to prevent money laundering and other illegal financial activities.
All three founders eventually pleaded guilty in 2022. Each agreed to pay a $10 million fine as part of their plea agreements.
Hayes received a sentence of two years probation with six months of home detention. Delo was sentenced to 30 months of probation, while Reed received 18 months of probation.
In a statement released Friday, Delo described the prosecutions as politically motivated.
“This full and unconditional pardon by President Trump is a vindication of the position we have always held — that BitMEX, my co-founders and I should never have been charged with a criminal offense through an obscure, antiquated law,” he said.
Delo further claimed the company was “wrongfully made to serve as an example, sacrificed for political reasons and used to send inconsistent regulatory signals.” He expressed gratitude to the president for granting the pardons.
Hayes posted a brief note on social media simply saying “thank you” to Trump after the news broke.
The cryptocurrency exchange itself was ordered to pay $100 million in penalties in 2021. The fine came from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for violating the Commodity Exchange Act and other regulations.
Federal prosecutors had argued during the case that cryptocurrency companies serve as critical gatekeepers in financial markets. They claimed the BitMEX founders “allowed BitMEX to operate as a platform in the shadows of the financial markets.”
Court records revealed that BitMEX’s website had advertised that
“no real name or other advanced verification is required on BitMEX.” Reed had written in a 2015 email that one of BitMEX’s advantages included “the freedom to create an account without onerous KYC requirements.”
In May 2018, Reed was reportedly notified that BitMEX was being used to launder proceeds from a cryptocurrency hack. However, neither Reed nor the company filed the required suspicious activity report with the Treasury Department.
The pardons come shortly after Trump granted clemency to Trevor Milton, the former CEO of Nikola Motors. Milton had been convicted of fraud in 2022.
In January, Trump also pardoned Ross Ulbricht, the creator of Silk Road marketplace. Ulbricht had been serving a double life sentence plus 40 years with no possibility of parole.
Reports indicate that former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried has been seeking his own pardon from the Trump administration. Bankman-Fried was convicted of fraud related to the collapse of his cryptocurrency exchange.
Former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, who pleaded guilty to the same charge as Hayes and served four months in prison last year, has denied seeking a pardon.
However, Zhao noted in a social media post that “no felon would mind a pardon, especially being the only one in US history who was ever sentenced to prison for a single BSA charge.”
The BitMEX co-founders’ leadership roles at the company ended in 2020 due to the legal complications. Vivien Khoo stepped in as interim CEO after their departure from the company.
