Key takeaways:
- Attorneys sent a letter to the court informing them that Chastain had chosen to renounce his request for bail while appealing.
- In relation to offenses involving insider trading on the NFT platform, Chastain was found guilty on May 3 of wire fraud and money laundering charges.
An ex-manager of non-fungible token exchange OpenSea who was given a three-month prison term for insider trading has chosen to serve the term while his appeal is being processed.
Nathaniel Chastain’s attorneys sent a letter to the court in a New York District Court on September 6, informing them that Chastain had chosen to renounce his request for bail while appealing.
Because of this, starting November 2, Chastain will self-surrender and start serving his sentence while his appeal is pending in accordance with the court’s prior order and judgment.
In relation to offenses involving insider trading on the NFT platform, Chastain, a former product manager for OpenSea, was found guilty on May 3 of wire fraud and money laundering charges and was given a three-month prison sentence on August 22.
On November 2, Chastain would be required to surrender himself. A $50,000 fine and any illegally obtained cryptocurrency he earned from trading on OpenSea were also ordered to be forfeited by him. The judge reportedly said the following at sentencing:
“Respect for the law and general deterrence militate for punishment,”
Choosing which NFTs and collections would be shown on OpenSea’s homepage was under Chastain’s control, dramatically enhancing their visibility and potentially having an effect on their pricing. He is believed to have bought 45 NFTs, featured them on the homepage, and then sold them again for a profit after their prices rose.
Chastain was accused of knowing he was breaking the law when he used anonymous OpenSea accounts to conduct the trades, according to prosecuting attorney Allison Nichols’s defense at the time.
The NFT industry frequently deals with the problem of insider trading. More information may be available to some influential community members than to other users. Furthermore, it is typical for influential individuals in the sector to collaborate with and support projects using non-fungible tokens.
