KuCoin launches US$10 mln airdrop campaign amid legal woes

Cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin has announced a US$10 million airdrop for its users, featuring Bitcoin and its native KuCoin Token (KCS), amidst allegations of illegal operations and money laundering.

The platform claims that the initiative is intended as a token of gratitude to the platforms users during a tumultuous phase of legal challenges.

The U.S. Department of Justice charged KuCoin and its two founders with running an unlicensed money transmission business and breaching anti-money laundering statutes earlier this week.

According to the DOJ, founders Chun Gan and Ke Tang face a maximum sentence of five years in prison for each charge.

Meanwhile, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has accused the exchange of unauthorized commodity transactions.

Since the charges became public, KuCoin told investors that the exchange will continue its operation and that customer assets are safe.

KuCoins legal predicaments come as major cryptocurrency exchanges, including Coinbase and Binance, face legal issues of their own.

On Thursday, Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison for fraud charges related to the FTX collapse.