Crypto exchange Coinbase to transition out Neutrino members previously involved in Hacking Team

Following the massive backlash on Neutrino acquisition, Coinbase has announced that those Neutrino executives who worked at Hacking Team will be transitioned out of the company.

In an official statement, Coinbase Co-founder and CEO Brian Armstrong explained that any cryptocurrency exchange that has to engage with the banking system must implement a know-your-customer (KYC) and anti-money-laundering (AML) program, and blockchain analytics is a key part of these programs.

Armstrong said that the company worked with several outside vendors that provide blockchain analytics, but they didn’t support all the assets Coinbase has on its platform.

“So we knew at some point that we would need to bring this capability in house. We examined the players, found that Neutrino had some of the best technology in this area, and decided to acquire them,” he said.

Armstrong went on to say that while they looked hard at the technology and security of the Neutrino product, they did not “properly evaluate everything from the perspective of our mission and values as a crypto company.”

“We took some time to dig further into this over the past week, and together with the Neutrino team have come to an agreement: those who previously worked at Hacking Team (despite the fact that they have no current affiliation with Hacking Team), will transition out of Coinbase,” he added.