Do Kwon, the South Korean cryptocurrency entrepreneur behind two digital currencies that lost an estimated $40 billion in 2022, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to two U.S. charges of conspiracy to defraud and wire fraud.

NEW YORK (AP) — South Korean cryptocurrency mogul Do Kwon pleaded guilty on Tuesday to two fraud charges arising from the $40 billion collapse of a cryptocurrency ecosystem that had promised investors their money was safe. Kwon, 33, dubbed by some as “the cryptocurrency king,” entered the plea in Manhattan federal court.

He has been accused of a helping to spark a cryptocurrency crisis that cost investors more than $40bn.