Brother of Former Coinbase Employee Pleads Guilty to Insider Trading Charges: Report

Nikhil Wahi and his brother Ishan were arrested and charged in July, while their associate Sameer Ramani remained at large at the time of publication .

Nikhil Wahi, who was arrested for allegedly working with his brother and an associate on a scheme to commit insider trading using crypto, has reportedly pleaded guilty to wire fraud conspiracy charges.

According to a Monday report from Reuters, Wahi admitted to authorities in a virtual hearing that he used confidential information obtained from Coinbase to profit from crypto trading. Wahi's brother, Ishan, worked as a product manager at Coinbase, during which time he reportedly shared information regarding token launch dates with his brother and an associate, Sameer Ramani. The trio reportedly used the inside information to make approximately $1.5 million in earnings by trading 25 different cryptocurrencies between 2021 and 2022.

"I knew it was wrong to receive Coinbase's confidential information and to transact based on that confidential information," Wahi allegedly told the court.

Brother of former Coinbase executive pleads guilty to insider trading charge https://t.co/c6ak7oRr9K pic.twitter.com/5uBUHxyQar — Reuters (@Reuters) September 12, 2022

Wahi and his brother were arrested and charged in Seattle in July, while Ramani remains at large at press time but still faces similar charges. Cointelegraph reported that Ishan pleaded not guilty to wire fraud conspiracy and wire fraud charges in August. Reuters reported that Nikhil initially pleaded guilty but changed his plea as part of a deal with prosecutors.