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Join the Cybersecurity and Incident Response Group on LinkedInFive Hidden Takeaways from the Khaled and Mayweather SEC Orders | LinkedIn
Never in the history of U.S. securities regulation has there been more distortion, spin and deception than in the crazy, mixed-up world of initial coin offerings (ICOs). Imagine an entire industry rising up where just about everything related to that industry is blatantly unlawful and often flat-out fraudulent. That is the nature of the ICO space and […]
Jennifer Aniston? Prince Charles? Why the Crypto-Enforcement Onslaught by U.S. State Regulators Has Only Just Begun | LinkedIn
While admittedly outrageous and almost laughable, the Wind Wide Coin case conveys far more than a message about the perils of identity theft and cryptocurrency fraud. Wind Wide Coin, and a slew of other prosecutions and enforcement actions brought by Texas and other U.S. states, have put crypto-promotors on notice: Move over SEC, FinCEN, CFTC, […]
Buyer Beware: Hundreds of Bitcoin Wannabes Show Hallmarks of Fraud – WSJ
Hundreds of technology firms raising money in the fevered market for cryptocurrencies are using deceptive or even fraudulent tactics to lure investors. In a review of documents produced for 1,450 digital coin offerings, The Wall Street Journal has found 271 with red flags that include plagiarized investor documents, promises of guaranteed returns and missing or […]
The rise of tokens: critical considerations for VC firms – PE Hub
Given the increasing volume and role that tokens are playing in the startup market, VC investors are increasingly considering ICOs for non-dilutive financing for their portfolio companies. These token offerings have been described as “reverse ICOs,” but we believe that a more appropriate name is “hybrid token offerings.” via The rise of tokens: critical considerations for […]
DOJ, SEC Argue Vague Laws No Excuse for ICO Fraud – CoinDesk
The U.S. government is pushing back against an effort to dismiss the charges it filed in an ongoing initial coin offering (ICO) fraud lawsuit. In twin filings submitted Monday, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) dismissed claims by defendant Maksim Zaslavskiy that U.S. securities laws don’t apply to the […]
The Benefits of an ICO Bubble Burst | LinkedIn
But amid the fallout of Chairman Clayton’s ICO blitzkrieg, there will also be a faint, yet gleaming ray of sunlight. An ICO bubble burst will inevitably insure that whatever cryptocurrency marketplace survives will provide the same customer protections and capital safeguards often taken for granted in the context of the traditional trading of securities. This not only makes […]
The SEC Man Cometh for ICO Attorneys | Bloomberg Law
The Securities and Exchange Commission is expanding its focus from the companies developing initial coin offerings to the hundreds of lawyers who are guiding them through regulatory gray areas. The industry argues it doesn’t fit neatly into existing legal frameworks as global regulators consider whether virtual tokens might be securities — which require strict regulatory […]
Beware ICO Lawyers: As Regulatory Gatekeepers, You’re the Next SEC Target | LinkedIn
Under any circumstance, by allowing their ICO clients to peddle unlawful securities and violate a broad range of securities laws, lawyers are failing in their role as gatekeepers. Moreover, by providing the kind of legal advice that can land a client into the SEC’s crosshairs, or even worse, into the crosshairs of criminal investigators and prosecutors, […]
The SEC ICO Onslaught Has Begun, Here’s How to Know if Your ICO Will be the SEC’s Next Target . . . | LinkedIn
Invested in an ICO and worried that your ICO may be targeted by the SEC? You should be. Internet Coin Offerings (ICOs), the method by which startups or other parties can issue cryptographic tokens in an effort to fund or bootstrap a new blockchain network, got hit by a double whammy when the U.S. Securities and […]
Want a Refund for Tokens Bought in an ICO? You May be Entitled to One . . . | John Reed Stark, LinkedIn
Issuers, promoters, curators, sponsors, facilitators, so-called “finders,” investment banks, law firms, affiliates and anyone else connected to Internet Coin Offerings (“ICOs”), the method by which startups or other parties can issue cryptographic tokens in an effort to fund or bootstrap a new blockchain network, should be on notice. Thanks to a range of U.S. securities statutes, […]
The SEC and ICOs: Winter is Coming . . . | John Reed Stark, LinkedIn
For the embryonic, novel and crazed ICO marketplace, Winter is coming. But not in its traditional form, rather in the form of a swift, steady and relentless U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) dragnet. For those scratching their heads, “Winter Is Coming” is the motto of House Stark, one of the Great Houses of Westeros […]