Tagged: enforcement

September 8, 2023 @ 10:04 am By JD Alois  |  

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced charges targeting three DeFi, or decentralized finance, operations yesterday. These included Deridex, ZeroX, and Opyn. The CFTC alleges the offering of illegal derivatives trading. The CFTC charged Deridex and Opyn with failing to register as a swap… Read More

September 8, 2023 @ 8:41 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission has settled charges against Linus Financial, Inc. for failing to register the offers and sales of its retail crypto lending product, the Linus Interest Accounts. The SEC decided against having Linus pay penalties as the company took “prompt remedial actions”… Read More

August 29, 2023 @ 4:25 pm By JD Alois  |  

SEC Commissioners Hester Peirce and Mark Uyeda have joined to issue a statement on the enforcement action taken by the Commission against NFT issuer Impact Theory. Yesterday, the SEC revealed its first enforcement action against an NFT issuer, with the firm settling the allegations without… Read More

August 28, 2023 @ 12:31 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed charges against Impact Theory and the issuance of an NFT or non-fungible token that was deemed to be an unregistered offering of crypto asset securities. This is the first NFT offering that the SEC has targeted for… Read More

August 24, 2023 @ 8:44 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged former New Jersey State Correctional Police Officer John A. DeSalvo with fraud in relation to the offering of the “Blazer Token,” which the SEC believes is a “crypto asset security.” At the same time, the US Attorney’s… Read More

August 21, 2023 @ 11:36 am By JD Alois  |  

The SEC has charged Titan Global Capital Management, described as a “Fintech investment advisor,” with touting hypothetical performance that was misleading. Titan has settled the allegations without admitting or denying the SEC’s claims. The firm has paid a small penalty of $192,454 in disgorgement as… Read More

August 16, 2023 @ 8:59 am By JD Alois  |  

BAM Trading Services Inc. and BAM Management US Holdings Inc. have filed a motion for a protective order in the ongoing legal battle with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). BAM is the corporate name for Binance.US. This past June, the SEC filed charges against… Read More

August 13, 2023 @ 10:09 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) revealed an enforcement action against Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) back in June. Among other allegations, the SEC claims that Coinbase is operating as an unregistered securities exchange. The SEC targeted Coinbase even though it had clearly approved the firm to become… Read More

August 10, 2023 @ 9:15 pm By JD Alois  |  

Bittrex has settled with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding charges that it operated an unregistered securities exchange. Bittrex’s foreign operation, Bittrex Global GmbH has also agreed to settle similar charges. Bittrex has agreed to pay a total penalty of $24 million. As part… Read More

July 31, 2023 @ 12:10 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed charges for an unregistered securities offering involving crypto. According to the SEC, Richard Heart, also known as Richard Schueler, along with three separate firms, Hex, PulseX, and PulseChain, raised over $1 billion in an unregistered securities offering…. Read More

July 26, 2023 @ 11:41 am By JD Alois  |  

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed charges against Michael and Amanda Griffis of Clarksville, Tennessee, according to a statement issued by the Commission. The complaint charges the defendants with defrauding over 100 people and failing to register with the CFTC in connection with a… Read More

July 21, 2023 @ 6:25 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed charges against the issuer of DWE and BPC alleging the issuance of unregistered securities.  The SEC claims that  Alexander Elbanna and his affiliated entities have committed fraud. According to the SEC, between February 2018 and April 2021,… Read More

July 21, 2023 @ 11:29 am By JD Alois  |  

The Digital World Acquisition Corporation (NASDAQ:DWAC), a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) has been charged with material misrepresentations by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). DWAC has agreed to a cease-and-desist order and to pay an $18 million penalty in the event it closes a… Read More

July 13, 2023 @ 10:39 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed additional charges in regard to the Frank case and its sale to JP Morgan for $175 million in 2021. According to a statement by the SEC, former Chief Growth Officer of Frank, Olivier Amar, has been charged… Read More

June 28, 2023 @ 12:03 pm By JD Alois  |  

Michael Ackerman, from Alliance, Ohio, has been ordered to pay over $50 million for a bogus digital asset trading scam. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has received a default judgment regarding Ackerman from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York…. Read More

June 22, 2023 @ 6:42 pm By JD Alois  |  

Another Pig Butchering scam is in the news again. “Sha Zhu Pan” or “Pig Butchering” is a romance plot designed to fleece the funds of the unsuspecting. In this case, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed an enforcement action against Cunwen Zhu and… Read More

June 21, 2023 @ 1:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed an enforcement action against audit firm Marcum LLP regarding its audit work for “hundreds” of SPACs. Marcum has settled the matter without admitting or denying the SEC’s findings, paying a $10 million penalty while agreeing to remedial… Read More

June 17, 2023 @ 9:56 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has received court approval for emergency relief regarding assets held by Binance for US customers. The SEC states that all defendants in its litigation against Binance Holdings Limited, BAM Management US Holdings Inc., BAM Trading Services Inc., and Changpeng… Read More

June 10, 2023 @ 5:54 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is claiming a significant legal victory in the litigation of Ooki DAO. According to the CFTC, the decentralized autonomous organization has received a default judgment in which the court held that Ooki DAO is a “person” under the Commodity… Read More

June 10, 2023 @ 4:56 pm By JD Alois  |  

The US Department of Justice has charged two Russians, Alexey Bilyuchenko, 43, and Aleksandr Verner, 29, with the hacking of Mt. Gox. The crypto exchange was plundered in 2011 and ultimately collapsed. At the same time, the Russians have been charged with operating the BTC-e… Read More