Ten Crypto Exchanges Told Us How They Work. Looks Like They’re at Least as Sketchy as We Thought.
According to New York’s Attorney General, the best way to learn how cryptocurrency exchanges work might be simply asking them.
In April, the AG’s office sent questionnaires to 13 crypto exchanges, asking about everything from their trading operations to their insurance policies. On Thursday, it released a report based on those responses — and the results don’t inspire confidence.
Ten of the 13 exchanges submitted responses, including major players Bitfinex and Coinbase. According to the report, these responses give crypto investors three broad reasons to be wary. First off, exchanges have many potential conflicts of interests, in some cases owning large quantities of the same currencies they help investors trade. They also aren’t doing much to prevent abusive trading practices. And the platforms do little or nothing to protect customer funds — though some do give the illusion of protection.