Yigit Taha OZTURK 
A federal court in Boston has fined UAE-based crypto firm CLS Global $428,059 for wash trading, following a sting operation by the FBI involving a trap token called NexFundAI. According to the Massachusetts US Attorney’s Office, the firm also received a three-year probation from offering services in the US. CLS Global had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit market manipulation and wire fraud.
CLS Global Caught in FBI’s NexFundAI Trap
The FBI launched a fake token, NexFundAI, as part of an undercover investigation in May 2024. CLS Global, along with Hong Kong-linked ZM Quant Investment and Russia-linked Gotbit Consulting, agreed to provide fraudulent market-making services, manipulating token volume to deceive investors.
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The SEC filed fraud charges in October 2024 against CLS Global and its employee Andrey Zhorzhes.
What Is Wash Trading?
Wash trading involves artificially inflating trading volume by repeatedly buying and selling the same asset. This gives a false impression of demand.
A report from Chainalysis in January 2025 estimated at least $2.6B in wash traded volumes — about 2% of total daily crypto market volume.
However, the US National Bureau of Economic Research suggested in 2022 that up to 70% of activity on unregulated exchanges could be wash trading.
Who Is CLS Global?
Founded in 2017, CLS Global was created to fill the demand for “high-quality market-making solutions.” CEO Filipp Veselov, formerly of Latoken, leads the firm. Their CRO, Pavel Singaevskii, was previously with Stex, which allegedly shut down unexpectedly in 2023.
Despite the charges, CLS Global still operates and maintains over 110,000 followers on X.
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