--- title: "Former OpenSea Executive Arrested by Feds for Insider Trading" description: "A former executive from one of the world's largest NFT marketplaces has been charged with insider trading by the US government." date: "2022-06-02" modified: "2022-06-03" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/opensea-executive-insider-trading-charges" categories: - "Blockchain" - "Future Society" tags: - "justice department" - "nfts" - "opensea" - "the digest" --- # Former OpenSea Executive Arrested by Feds for Insider Trading ![A former executive from one of the world's largest NFT marketplaces has been charged with insider trading by the US government.]() *\Image: Getty Images/Futurism\* ## OpenSeason A former executive from one of the largest NFT marketplaces has been charged with insider trading and money laundering over allegations that he exploited privileged information for personal gain. In [a statement announcing the indictment](), the Department of Justice alleged that former OpenSea exec Nathaniel Chastain put a crypto spin on an age-old insider trading scheme. Basically, they said, he'd buy up dozens of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that he knew would be featured on the site's homepage, before "flipping" them for up to five times what he initially paid. If the charges stick, it could be the strongest sign yet that accountability is starting to loom large in what's so far been a mostly-unregulated wild west for blockchain tech. ## DOJa Cats According to the DOJ, this is the first time ever that someone's been federally charged with a cryptocurrency-based insider trading scheme. The US government *has* brought charges against at least three other individuals for crypto-related charges in 2022, including the [arrest of the a crypto inflected rapper]() and her husband, who allegedly laundered billions in stolen crypto, and an unnamed American citizen who the government claims [violated international sanctions]() by sending crypto to countries on the State Department's shit list. Chastain was [asked to resign from his position]() as head of product at OpenSea last September, just two days after allegations of his [insider trading first arose on Twitter](). "As the world’s leading web3 marketplace for NFTs, trust and integrity are core to everything we do," an OpenSea spokesperson said in response to the news. "When we learned of Nate’s behavior, we initiated an investigation and ultimately asked him to leave the company. His behavior was in violation of our employee policies and in direct conflict with our core values and principles." In a quote that sounds straight out of latter-season "Law & Order," federal prosecutor Damian Williams said that the US Attorney's Office is bent on "stamping out insider trading — whether it occurs on the stock market or the blockchain." "NFTs might be new," Williams said in the DOJ statement, "but this type of criminal scheme is not." **READ MORE:** [Former Employee Of NFT Marketplace Charged In First Ever Digital Asset Insider Trading Scheme]() \[Justice Department\] **More on crypto feds:** [*The Head of the CIA Says It's Been Doing Mysterious Cryptocurrency Work*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()