According to BlockBeats, on January 9, Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon could face up to 130 years in prison if convicted of crimes related to the collapse of his failed TerraUST stablecoin. He appeared for the second hearing on Wednesday at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, marking the highly anticipated and repeatedly delayed federal case entering the evidence disclosure phase.
Kwon pleaded not guilty to nine felony charges related to fraud involving Terraform. He was recently extradited to the United States from Montenegro after a lengthy legal process, during which the court considered whether to send this crypto founder back to his home country of South Korea, where he also faces charges.
Wednesday's 'preliminary conference' aimed to determine whether the U.S. case could be resolved without a trial and to establish other pre-trial details. U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer, who has handled multiple crypto-related cases and previously dismissed a class-action lawsuit against Coinbase, presided over the conference. Judge Engelmayer set the trial date for January 26, 2026, and encouraged Do Kwon to engage in plea negotiations. (The Block)