Cryptocurrency Flash Crash Draws Scrutiny From Watchdog

  • U.S. regulator asking Coinbase about June plunge in ether
  • Agency sent letter to exchange asking about margin trading

Cryptocurrency Flash Crash Draws CFTC Scrutiny

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A popular digital-coin exchange is drawing scrutiny from U.S. regulators over a June flash crash that erased most of the value in the second-largest cryptocurrency before traders had time to blink their eyes.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has requested information from Coinbase Inc. about a June 21 incident on its GDAX platform in which the ether digital token suffered a precipitous drop, falling to 10 cents from $317.81 in milliseconds before quickly recovering, said two people familiar with the matter.