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Re:Tether Fined $41M for Lying About Reserves by Kranar on Friday October 15, 2021 @02:49PM (#28881513)
The CFTC doesn't have that authority; a company can only get shut down for a criminal offense and Tether is not accused of any crime. Only the Department of Justice can prosecute or investigate crimes, the CFTC is an independent agency and as such has no authority to do so.

All the CFTC can do is levy a fine, so both parties are fairly indifferent as to whether that money comes from a judgement or from a settlement. There could be some minor benefit of not having to admit any "wrongdoing" for press release purposes, but overall it makes no difference.

Re:Tether Fined $41M for Lying About Reserves by hncommenter13 on Friday October 15, 2021 @10:38PM (#28885108)
Not a lawyer, but I'm not sure that's correct.

Per the CFTC's Enforcement website, they can bring civil enforcement actions in court--without the other party present aka ex-parte--seeking to freeze and enjoin the operations of a person or entity they can convince a judge is violating the Commodity Exchange Act.

From [0]: "At the conclusion of an investigation, the Division may recommend that the Commission initiate administrative proceedings or seek injunctive and ancillary relief on behalf of the Commission in United States District Courts around the country. Administrative sanctions may include orders imposing civil monetary penalties, suspending, denying, revoking or restricting registration and exchange trading privileges, and orders of restitution. The Commission also may obtain temporary restraining orders and preliminary and permanent injunctions in Federal court to halt ongoing violations. Other relief may include appointment of a receiver, a freeze of assets, restitution, and disgorgement of unlawfully acquired benefits. The CEA also provides that the Commission may obtain certain temporary relief on an ex parte basis (that is, without notice to the other party). When those enjoined violate court orders, the Division may seek to have the offenders held in contempt. When the Division obtains evidence that criminal violations of the CEA have occurred, it may refer the matter to the Department of Justice for prosecution.

[0] https://www.cftc.gov/LawRegulation/Enforcement/OfficeofDirec...

Here's an example: https://www.investmentexecutive.com/news/from-the-regulators...

Re:Tether Fined $41M for Lying About Reserves by RNCTX on Friday October 15, 2021 @09:53PM (#28884955)
> The CFTC doesn't have that authority; a company can only get shut down for a criminal offense and Tether is not accused of any crime.

Fraud is a crime.

Re:Tether Fined $41M for Lying About Reserves by dragonwriter on Saturday October 16, 2021 @05:58AM (#28886725)
> Fraud is a crime.

CFTC does not prosecute crimes. CFTC could make a referral to DoJ, but where a regulatory agency can both engage in civil enforcement actions and make criminal referrals, even when it does both in the same case, the civil action will usually be filed and often resolved before any visible action (indictment, etc.) on the criminal referral.

So, the resolution of the civil case doesn’t mean anything with regard to any potential criminal charges.

Re:Tether Fined $41M for Lying About Reserves by honksillet on Friday October 15, 2021 @10:25PM (#28885067)
Yeah, so the DOJ would need to prosecute.