Tagged: enforcement

May 25, 2023 @ 10:39 am By JD Alois  |  

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed an enforcement action in the US District Court for the Central District of California against David Carmona, Juan Arellano Parra, Moses Valdez, David Brend, and Marco A. Ruiz Ochoa, who were all doing business as a company… Read More

May 24, 2023 @ 10:40 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has obtained final judgments against HempAmerica and promoter Eleazer Kauderer. According to the SEC, the US District Court for the Southern District of New York has entered a final judgment on default against HempAmerica. Without admitting or denying the… Read More

May 19, 2023 @ 10:47 am By JD Alois  |  

A grand jury has issued an indictment in the case of Frank, a Fintech that helped college students gain access to grants and loans, and its founder Charlie Javice. The charges include bank fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy, and securities fraud while demanding the forfeiture of… Read More

May 19, 2023 @ 10:27 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has received a default judgment against Chicago Crypto Capital (CCC) and its founder Brian Amoah and former salesperson Elbert “Al” Elliott. The defendants were previously charged with fraud and the unregistered offering of digital asset securities. The SEC claims… Read More

May 5, 2023 @ 10:51 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has announced the largest-ever whistleblower award to the tune of $279 million. This is more than double the prior top amount of $114 million. Whistleblower awards are given to individuals who tip off the SEC in regard to infractions… Read More

April 18, 2023 @ 4:37 pm By JD Alois  |  

Robo-advisor Betterment has been hit by charges from the Securities and Exchange Commission regarding material misstatements and omissions pertaining to a tax loss harvesting service (TLH). Betterment has settled the charges with the SEC without admitting or denying the claims, paying a $9 million penalty…. Read More

April 17, 2023 @ 10:25 am By JD Alois  |  

At the end of March, US-based crypto exchange Bittrex announced that it was shuttering its operations. Bittrex stated that it would cease operations on April 30, 2023, while providing a series of timelines for its users, recommending that accounts are closed as soon as possible…. Read More

April 3, 2023 @ 4:26 pm By JD Alois  |  

Last week, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged beaxy with operating as a national securities exchange minus the authorization to do so. The SEC filed charges against founder beaxy Artak Hamazaspyan, and his company Beaxy Digital, Ltd., for raising $8 million in an unregistered… Read More

March 30, 2023 @ 5:40 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has posted a notice that on March 15, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York entered a final judgment against Defendants John and sister JonAtina (Tina) Barksdale ordering permanent injunctions, disgorgement with interest, and… Read More

March 30, 2023 @ 11:11 am By JD Alois  |  

Do Kwon is expected to stand trial in Montenegro before facing charges in other interested jurisdictions. Kwon is the founder and CEO of Terraform Labs, the crypto company that created TerraUSD and LUNA. TerraUSD was an aspiring algorithmic stablecoin pegged to the US dollar. The… Read More

March 29, 2023 @ 11:35 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged the crypto exchange beaxy (beaxy.com) and its executives with operating an unregistered national securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency. The SEC states that it has also charged the founder of the platform, Artak Hamazaspyan, and Beaxy Digital, Ltd.,… Read More

March 28, 2023 @ 9:49 am By JD Alois  |  

This past week, the Commodities Futures Trading Commission filed an enforcement action against Binance and its founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ). The lawsuit comes as no surprise to industry followers as Binance is the largest crypto exchange globally and represents a fat target for regulators. The… Read More

March 24, 2023 @ 8:09 am By Omar Faridi  |  

  After trying to evade law enforcement for around six months, Terraform Labs CEO Do Kwon has now been taken into police custody in Montenegro. Kwon and Terraform Labs were responsible for TerraUSD, an aspiring algorithmic stablecoin, and sister crypto Luna, which collapsed last year… Read More

March 22, 2023 @ 4:52 pm By JD Alois  |  

Eight Influencers Charged for Promotion of Digital Assets: Lindsey Lohan, Jake Paul, DeAndrew Cortez Way (Soulja Boy), Austin Mahone, Michele Mason (Kendra Lust), Miles Parks McCollum (Lil Yachty) Shaffer Smith (Ne-Yo), Aliaune Thiam (Akon).   The Securities and Exchange Commission has posted another digital asset… Read More

March 6, 2023 @ 4:31 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission has obtained an asset freeze in an emergency action regarding BKCoin Management, a digital asset hedge fund, and principal Kevin Kang. Kang was reportedly fired from BKCoin last October for allegedly misappropriating assets. Kang co-founded BKCoin and, at one point,… Read More

February 18, 2023 @ 12:40 pm By JD Alois  |  

Paul Anthony Pierce, a former NBA pro and sports analyst, has agreed to settle with the Securities and Exchange Commission for promoting EMAX tokens on social media. As was previously reported, the same digital asset embroiled influencer Kim Kardashian who had to cough up a… Read More

February 16, 2023 @ 9:16 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Binance, the world’s largest digital currency exchange, is reportedly expecting to pay monetary penalties in order to settle US regulatory and law-enforcement investigations of its operations. This, according to the company’s CSO (as reported by the WSJ). Over the past five years, Binance has managed… Read More

February 14, 2023 @ 3:11 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

More than $115 million in refunds are being “sent to consumers nationwide” as a result of a 2018 action the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice brought against MoneyGram (NASDAQ: MGI) for “failing to crack down on scammers using their payment system.”… Read More

February 10, 2023 @ 9:25 am By JD Alois  |  

  SEC Chair Gary Gensler received some face time this morning on CNBC in the wake of the Commission’s enforcement action taken against crypto exchange Kraken. The platform was compelled to pay a $30 million penalty for its staking service offered to US investors. Staking… Read More

February 9, 2023 @ 4:06 pm By JD Alois  |  

Following industry rumblings anticipating the move, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has taken action against crypto exchange Kraken in regard to their staking service. Kraken has settled the charges by the SEC without admitting or denying the allegations and paying a $30 million penalty…. Read More