Cryptsy CEO Denies He Moved Millions Of Dollars In Funds From Service

Paul Vernon, chief executive of now-defunct digital currency exchange Cryptsy, is denying allegations he took millions of dollars in funds from the service and moved it to his personal accounts.

According to a report by CoinDesk, Vernon said statements issued by a court-appointed receiver earlier in August were misleading, and the money movements were due to a mingling of business and personal accounts. “This is an interpretation by the plaintiff with the sole purpose of strengthening their case,” said Vernon in the report. “Were there business mistakes made during the course of Cryptsy’s operations? Of course, every business makes mistakes. One mistake that was made, which is a common mistake in small business, is mixing personal and business accounts.”

According to the report, Cryptsy shuttered its doors earlier this year, citing a hack in 2014 that the company claims left it with no money and millions of dollars in liabilities. The report noted the digital currency exchange operator also faced growing complaints for months about withdrawals. While Vernon would not address some of the allegations put forth by the court-appointed receiver, including claims that the CEO deleted information from Cryptsy’s servers before the receiver took possession of the company’s assets, he did claim the receiver intentionally ignored information that could have helped his case and denied claims the exchange improperly handled funds that were in alternative digital currencies. “I do not know why the receiver, who is supposed to be neutral, is cherry-picking information that only benefits the plaintiff,” Vernon said in the report.

While it’s unclear what really happened at Cryptsy, there are recent cases of hackers infiltrating an exchange. This summer, Bitfinex, a Hong Kong-based bitcoin exchange, was hacked, with bad guys making off with $65 million of the virtual currency. The hack resulted in a plummeting in the price of bitcoin and Bitfinex putting all trading and deposits on hold while it investigated it. The exchange is operational again.

Amazon to Shut Down ‘Prime Try Before You Buy’ Service

Amazon Prime Try Before You Buy

Amazon will shut down its “Prime Try Before You Buy” service on Jan. 31, according to a notice on the company’s website.

The Information reported the ending of the service Friday (Jan. 10), saying Amazon launched the service in 2017, allowing Prime members to order clothing, try it on and decide whether to keep it before being charged for it.

CNBC reported Friday that the move is the latest example of Amazon’s efforts to reduce costs across the company.

After the service is wound down, Prime members will still be able to order clothing, make normal returns and receive a refund, according to the report from The Information.

An Amazon spokesperson told The Information that the company offers other features for clothes shoppers like personalized size recommendations, improved size charts and a virtual try-on tool.

Amazon touted its virtual try-on capabilities in a March blog post, saying the option is available for products from popular brands.

“Amazon’s Virtual Try-On feature brings the in-store experience to your mobile device by using augmented reality to help you visualize a new pair of sneakers or sunglasses yourself, as well as lip colors and eyeshadow in real time, wherever you are,” the post said.

Many clothing brands and retailers are turning to artificial intelligence to manage the costly problem of returns by helping consumers buy products they will actually want to keep when they arrive, PYMNTS reported in June.

A practice called “bracketing,” in which consumers buy items in multiple sizes or colors, intending to return some of them later, is reportedly one of the contributors to rising return ratesHappy Returns reports that nearly two-thirds of consumers engage in bracketing.

Increased return volumes pose logistical and financial challenges for retailers, Loop Returns CEO Hannah Bravo told PYMNTS in an interview posted Monday (Jan. 6).

“For online retailers, handling returns is far more complex than shipping orders,” Bravo said. “Each return must be manually unpacked, checked and restocked, requiring extra staff and warehouse space. This costly process has pushed retailers to seek new technologies that can both reduce returns and keep customers satisfied.”