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The New York Attorney General’s office has been going after Tether and Bitfinex since April, and today was the date of the latest hearing in the case. With opinion within the community going both ways, New York Supreme Court Judge Joel Cohen has decided to extend his preliminary injunction, as he was not ready to make a final decision.
A 90-Day Extension
The defense again claimed that New York-based customers were no longer allowed and that one such customer had been identified and removed last week. A new hearing date will now be set and an earlier preliminary injunction will be extended for 90 days, even though Judge Cohen previously said that he hoped the case would be resolved today.
As a result, Tether cannot lend any more funds to Bitfinex, though both companies will continue to operate as usual.
The $850 Million Case
Bitfinex and Tether have a parent company called iFinex, and the New York Attorney General’s office obtained a court order against the company in April for allegedly covering $850 million worth of USDT.
Bitfinex responded quickly, claiming that the order was “written in bad faith”. iFinex argued that the NYAG lacked jurisdiction over the case since the companies no longer served New York customers.
As CryptoPotato reported, evidence came to light suggesting that the “largest stakeholders” of both Tether and Bitfinex resided and worked in New York between 2014 and 2018. New York customers could redeem USDT until November 2017, the two companies opened two bank accounts in 2017-2018, and they loaned USDT to a New York trading firm.