The United States has launched a significant investigation into cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin and its founders, causing the exchange’s token, KCS, to experience a downturn. Despite some community support, KCS’s value decreased by 2.83% in 24 hours and has seen an overall weekly drop of over 18%. Correspondingly, trader sentiment declined, leading to a 52.92% slump in trading volume.
KCS Endures Market Fluctuations
Trading at $11.96, KCS’s 24-hour trading volume reached $4.1 million, reflecting a downtrend that has whittled away part of its monthly gains. However, despite recent losses, KCS still holds a 5.94% gain over the past 30 days, buoyed in part by Bitcoin‘s robust performance, remaining above $70,000.
Legal Challenges for KuCoin
A lawsuit filed on March 26th by the US Department of Justice alleges that KuCoin engaged in unlicensed money transmission and violated the Bank Secrecy Act by failing to maintain an adequate anti-money laundering program. This has led to a failure in verifying customer identities and reporting suspicious activities.
In the aftermath of the lawsuit, KuCoin CEO Johnny Liu, on March 27th, announced a $10 million airdrop in BTC and KCS as a token of gratitude to the community for their support through the crisis. The move seems to show a commitment to maintaining community trust despite legal hurdles.
Amid these events, Bitcoin’s price has also been under the spotlight, trading at $70,342 with a slight decrease of 0.65%. However, the market appears to respond positively to Bitcoin’s sustained value over the $70,000 threshold.
