Unfortunately for a small few, endeavors within the crypto world end in tragedy. It’s with great sadness to report that Tobiasz Niemiro – BitMarket co-owner – has been found dead outside his home in Olsztyn, Poland. Niemiro bought a stake in BitMarket, but earlier this month the exchange announced that it was being forced to shut its doors. Poor liquidity was blamed for the exchange shutting down, and it appears as if one investor has decided to take his or her anger out on Niemiro.
Circumstances are Still Murky
Several leading news outlets are reporting that Niemiro sustained a gunshot to the head, indicating that this was a hit of some sort. In November last year, a Swedish crypto trader was sentenced to six and a half years behind bars after he mailed a bomb to an exchange. The trader sent the bomb in the mail after the exchange refused to change his password. This plays into the theory that the attack on Niemiro could very well have been a hit from an angry crypto trader. It’s thought that around 400 traders have been impacted by the exchange deciding to shut its doors.
Exchanges Are Suffering
Sadly, even with the recent booming crypto markets, certain crypto exchanges have failed to make any headway or profit. Last week we saw Fairx shut down after failing to raise any money in a new funding round, while back in April Coinnest closed its doors after its CEO was found to be embezzling funds from the exchange. For the time being, it appears as if the BitMarket closure was genuine, but as we saw with QuadrigaCX you can never take these things too lightly.
Are We Heading Down a Rabbit Hole?
The circumstances of Niemiro’s death are still being treated as suspicious, indicating that suicide is most likely already ruled out. As we saw in the case of QuadrigaCX, the other business partner decided to siphon off large amounts of funds from cold wallets. Once investigators find their way into the cold storage systems of BitMarket we could be in for a surprise. Should there be recent large volumes of transactions out of the wallets it might well be worth looking at Niemiro’s business partner.
We’re in for a lengthy investigation into the true cause of Niemiro’s death, but for now it’s looking rather suspicious. It could either be a business deal turned sour or an angry crypto trader seeking revenge. Either way, we will likely find out more in the coming weeks.
