The US Justice Department has opened a criminal probe into alleged price manipulation of Bitcoin and other digital currencies, Bloomberg reports.
The probe targets illegal practices that can influence prices — such as spoofing, or flooding the market with fake orders with the purpose to trick other traders into buying or selling crypto currencies, sources told Bloomberg. The investigation is currently in the early stages of investigation.
For the investigation federal prosecutors are working with a financial regulator that oversees derivatives tied to Bitcoin, namely the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
According to authorities, virtual currencies can be subject to fraud for reasons that include skepticism that all exchanges are actively pursuing cheaters, lack of regulations similar to that governing stocks and other assets and sharp price swings.
More info - http://business-review.eu/news/us-opens-investigation-into-bitcoin-price-manipulation-170945
