Gokhan Ergocun and Deniz Cicek
22 April 2021•Update: 22 April 2021
ISTANBUL/ANKARA
Turkish prosecutors on Thursday launched an investigation into a cryptocurrency exchange platform, Thodex, whose website is currently inaccessible.
The Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office in Istanbul appealed to personnel for their testimonies on the platform, which has allegedly upset hundreds of thousands of members.
Abdullah Usame Ceran, a lawyer, filed a criminal complaint against Fatih Faruk Ozer, the founder and CEO of the platform, alleging "aggravated fraud."
Ceran stressed that the platform had 400,000 members, of which 390,000 were active, and said the platform does not allow any withdrawal transactions currently.
He also said that there are some allegations on social media platforms that Ozer left Turkey on April 20 via Istanbul Airport.
The complainant asked to seize all assets of the platform, including vehicles, bank accounts, holdings and shares.
After some transaction issues, the platform had shared releases on Monday and Tuesday, announcing a six-hour maintenance period.
On Wednesday, the platform made another announcement, saying it will get into a partnership and that members would be able to make transactions again after a five-day maintenance period.
Meanwhile, Turkey’s financial crimes watchdog announced that it blocked all bank accounts of Thodex in the country as of Wednesday.
Turkey's Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK) initiated an investigation into the person in charge and the company.
