During a time when the firm is under investigation, BitMex has reportedly parted ways with its chief operating officer (COO).

The Hong Kong based crypto exchange firm has lost Angelina Kwan amid investigations by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

Kwan is the former head of compliance at the Hong Kong exchange, and she had been working as BitMex’s COO for less than a year.

Kwan leaves as CFTC launches an investigation

The reports that Kwan has left BitMex come a few weeks after the CFTC launched its investigation into the cryptocurrency exchange.

The CFTC is investigating BitMex for allegedly allowing US investors to engage with crypto derivatives on its exchange platform. The investigation into these allegations is ongoing and it will likely last a few months.

The CFTC’s investigations come after BitMex came under scrutiny from the UK’s advertising regulator.

The regulator said that the exchange published a graph with false information about Bitcoin’s price performance over the last ten years. The alleged misleading graph was published on the front page of a national newspaper in the UK.

Reports of Kwan leaving the exchange have raised several questions regarding BitMex’s possible guilt. Kwan has several years of experience in compliance.

She has worked in various compliance positions, including eight years at the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong (SFC).

BitMex’s current issues regarding compliance with CFTC regulations appear to have led to Kwan leaving the firm, which is not a good sign for the firm as the investigations by the regulator gather momentum.

The exchange’s COO has been placed on “garden leave” which means that she has been ordered to stop executing her duties, but she is still on the company’s payroll. The leave will be valid until the period of notice given by the firm expires. There has been no indication given about how long this period of notice is likely to last.

Hiring of individuals with mainstream financial services experience

Regulatory compliance is an issue that has plagued cryptocurrency exchanges in the US. Regulators in the country have placed strict restrictions on the crypto industry, and many crypto related businesses have stopped doing business in the US because of these restrictions.

Hiring individuals such as Kwan placed BitMex in a position to attract more investors to its platform. Kwan brought several years of experience to the firm, and her presence gave investors assurance that BitMex is committed to achieving compliance with regulations in the US.

Having an experienced team run any company’s compliance department is a vital requirement for the firm to have a good reputation among institutional investors.