Alleged Mango Markets exploiter waives bail during hearing in federal court

Lawyers representing a crypto user allegedly behind a $116-million exploit of decentralized exchange Mango Markets have consented to detention in the criminal case involving commodities fraud, commodities market manipulation and wire fraud.

According to accounts of social media users present on Feb. 2, Mango Markets user Avraham Eisenberg’s legal team waived his right to bail at a hearing in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. Federal Judge Richard Betman, who will be presiding over the criminal case, has reportedly set a followup court date for Feb. 14, suggesting that Eisenberg may remain in detention until at least Valentine’s Day.

Eisenberg was allegedly behind a major Mango Markets exploit in October 2022, withdrawing roughly $50 million worth of USD Coin (USDC), $27 million worth of Marinade Staked SOL (mSOL), $24 million worth of SOL and $15 million worth of MNGO — roughly $116 million. The platform reported roughly $67 million worth of funds had been returned following the exploit.

The crypto user has publicly said he believed his actions had been legal as part of a “highly profitable trading strategy.” U.S. authorities apparently disagreed, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Commodity Futures Trading Commissionand others announcing parallel charges in December and January related to fraud and market manipulation.

Authorities arrested Eisenberg in Puerto Rico in December pursuant to a criminal complaint. An indictment filed on Jan. 9 alleged he had “engaged in a scheme to fraudulently obtain approximately $110 million worth of cryptocurrency from the cryptocurrency exchange Mango Markets and its customers and achieved this objective by artificially manipulating the price of certain perpetual futures contracts.”

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Feb. 2 was Eisenberg’s first appearance in the Southern District of New York court following his transfer from Puerto Rico via Oklahoma. He has largely remained silent on social media following his arrest.