Zipmex, a cryptocurrency exchange that is awaiting buyout, is being investigated by the Thai Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), according to Bloomberg.
Authorities are looking into alleged violations of business rules related to digital assets, and service providers, the article explained.
One of the offenses named by sources is the offering of specific digital assets and products, which sounds similar to the legal battle raging between Ripple Labs and the Securities and Exchange Commission in the US.
Zipmex has been given until Thursday, January 12 to clarify whether it has been acting as a digital asset fund manager.
The company has no permit to operate as such, which could embroil it in further trouble with the regulator.
Legal enforcement could prove troublesome for the company, as it is currently being bought out by V Ventures, as part of a $100m deal which should conclude in the first quarter of 2023.
The exchange is also planning to unfreeze customer accounts once the acquisition is cleared.
Funds are currently blocked on the platform, partly due to the rapid downturn of the market, but also because of the pending acquisition. The Thai regulator has been investigating the company in some capacity for several months now.
The regulator filed a police report against Zipmex on September 7, 2022, naming the company in connection with “incomplete” reports about its operations. The report was submitted as part of a compliance procedure investigation.
Apart from looking into Zipmex, Thailand is now attempting to tighten the rules for crypto companies across the board, empowering its central bank to have more say in the industry.
The regulator has been able to push several meaningful pieces of legislation over the past months, including stricter rules on crypto advertisement, and a ban on crypto lending altogether, with the watchdog worried that consumers are not able to protect themselves against predatory lenders.
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