Regulatory

SEC v. Beaxy Digital Ltd. et al: Notice of Settlement & Motion for Judgment (‘$8M Unregistered Crypto Offering & Fraud’)

SEC's Notice of Settlement & Motion for Judgment in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Beaxy Digital, Ltd., of Saint Kitts and Nevis; Artak Hamazaspyan, Windy Inc., Nicholas Murphy, Randolph Bay Abbott, Braverock Investments, LLC, Future Digital Markets, Inc., Windy Financial LLC, Future Financial LLC, and Brian Peterson at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

SEC v. Beaxy Digital Ltd. et al: Complaint (‘$8M Unregistered Crypto Offering & Fraud’)

Complaint in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Beaxy Digital, Ltd., of Saint Kitts and Nevis; Artak Hamazaspyan, Windy Inc., Nicholas Murphy, Randolph Bay Abbott, Braverock Investments, LLC, Future Digital Markets, Inc., Windy Financial LLC, Future Financial LLC, and Brian Peterson at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

CFTC v. Changpeng Zhao et al: Complaint

Complaint regarding "the world’s largest centralized digital asset exchange" in Commodity Futures Trading Commission v. Changpeng Zhao, described as a citizen of Canada residing in Dubai; Binance Holdings Limited, of the Cayman Islands; Binance Holdings (IE) Limited, of Ireland; Binance (Services) Holdings Limited, of Ireland, and Samuel Lim, described as a resident of Singapore, at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

Michele Mason: $3.8K Penalties (‘Crypto Promotion’)

Administrative Order by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission imposing penalties totaling $3,820 on Michele Mason Lohan, described as “a film director and internet personality known as 'Kendra Lust'" residing in Michigan, USA, for promoting a crypto security known as “Tronix tokens” without disclosing that she was paid to do so.

Akon: $168K Penalties (‘Crypto Promotion’)

Administrative Order by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission imposing penalties totaling $168,000 on Aliaune Damala Badara Akon Thiam, described as "a well-known entertainer and internet personality known as 'Akon'" residing in Georgia, USA, for promoting a crypto security known as “Tronix tokens” without disclosing that he was paid to do so.

Shaffer Smith: $48K Penalties (‘Crypto Promotion’)

Administrative Order by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission imposing penalties totaling $48,000 on Shaffer Smith, described as “a well-known entertainer and internet personality known as 'Ne-Yo'” residing in Georgia, USA, for promoting a crypto security known as “Tronix tokens” without disclosing that he was paid to do so.

Miles McCollum: $40K Penalties (‘Crypto Promotion’)

Administrative Order by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission imposing penalties totaling $40,000 on Miles McCollum, described as "a well-known recording artist and internet media personality known as 'Lil Yachty'" residing in Georgia, USA, for promoting a crypto security known as “Tronix tokens” without disclosing that he was paid to do so.

Jake Paul: $100K Penalties (‘Crypto Promotion’)

Administrative Order by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission imposing penalties totaling $100,000 on Jake Paul, described as "a well-known internet personality and professional boxer" residing in Puerto Rico, for promoting a crypto security known as "Tronix tokens" without disclosing that he was paid to do so.

Lindsay Lohan: $40K Penalties (‘Crypto Promotion’)

Administrative Order by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission imposing penalties totaling $40,000 on Lindsay Lohan, described as "a well-known actress, singer, and internet personality" residing in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, for promoting a crypto security known as "Tronix tokens" without disclosing that she was paid to do so.

SEC v. Justin Sun et al: Complaint (‘Crypto Fraud’)

Complaint alleging securities fraud involving crypto in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Justin Sun, described as "a Chinese national and crypto asset entrepreneur"; Tron Foundation Limited, of Singapore; BitTorrent Foundation Ltd., of Singapore; Rainberry Inc., Austin Mahone, described as "a U.S. citizen and a singer and songwriter residing in Miami, Florida", and Deandre Cortez Way, a.k.a. Soulja Boy, a U.S. citizen and a singer and record producer residing in Calabasas, California", at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

SEC v. Ho Wan Kwok et al: Complaint (‘$850M Securities Fraud’)

Complaint alleging "multiple offering frauds orchestrated by Guo, an exiled Chinese businessman living in the United States who targeted retail investors through online and social media posts and videos" in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Ho Wan Kwok, a.k.a. Miles Guo, Miles Kwok, Wengui Guo, and Brother Seven, described as a citizen of Hong Kong residing in New York; Kin Ming Je, a.k.a. William Je, described as a dual citizen of Hong Kong and the United Kingdom residing in London, England; Mountains of Spices LLC, d.b.a. New York Farm, and G Club Operations LLC, of Puerto Rico, as Defendants, and Mei Guo, described as a citizen of Hong Kong residing in New York, England; Qiang Guo, described as a citizen of Hong Kong residing in London, England; Hing Chi Ngok, described as a citizen of China residing in Connecticut, and Sin Ting Rong, described as a citizen of Hong Kong residing in London, England, as Relief Defendants, at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

British Steamship Protection and Indemnity Association (Bermuda) Ltd.: Winding Up Notice

Public Notice by the Bermuda Monetary Authority that it has "successfully petitioned the Supreme Court of Bermuda to wind up British Steamship Protection and Indemnity Association (Bermuda) Limited", described as "a wholly owned subsidiary of British Steamship Protection & Indemnity Association Limited, a company incorporated in the Republic of the Marshall Islands", for regulatory breaches.

SEC v. BKCoin Management LLC et al: Asset Freeze Motion (‘$100M Crypto Fraud’)

Asset Freeze Motion in in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. BKCoin Management LLC, of Delaware, and Min Woo Kang, of New York, as Defendants, and BKCoin Capital LP, a.k.a. the Legacy Fund, of Delaware; BK Offshore Fund Ltd., of the British Virgin Islands; BKCoin Multi-Strategy Master Fund Ltd., of the British Virgin Islands; BKCoin Multi-Strategy Fund LP, of Delaware; BKCoin Multi-Strategy Fund Ltd., of the British Virgin Islands, and Bison Digital LLC, of Wyoming, as Relief Defendants, at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

SEC v. BKCoin Management LLC et al: Complaint (‘$100M Crypto Fraud’)

Complaint "to prevent further fraud and misappropriation of investor money" in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. BKCoin Management LLC, of Delaware, and Min Woo Kang, of New York, as Defendants, and BKCoin Capital LP, a.k.a. the Legacy Fund, of Delaware; BK Offshore Fund Ltd., of the British Virgin Islands; BKCoin Multi-Strategy Master Fund Ltd., of the British Virgin Islands; BKCoin Multi-Strategy Fund LP, of Delaware; BKCoin Multi-Strategy Fund Ltd., of the British Virgin Islands, and Bison Digital LLC, of Wyoming, as Relief Defendants, at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

African Gold Acquisition Corp.: $103K Fine

Administrative Order by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission imposing a fine of $103,591 on African Gold Acquisition Corp., described as "a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company incorporated in the Cayman Islands with its principal place of business in New York, New York", for, inter alia, the entity's "failure to implement sufficient internal controls enabled its former chief financial officer [Cooper Morgenthau] to misappropriate nearly all of the money in African Gold’s operating bank account and to otherwise effectively use African Gold’s operating bank account as his own personal account for over one year".

SEC v. Terraform Labs Pte Ltd. et al: Complaint (‘$40B Crypto Fraud’)

Complaint alleging the defendants "offered and sold crypto asset securities in unregistered transactions and perpetrated a fraudulent scheme that led to the loss of at least $40 billion of market value" in U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Terraform Labs Pte Ltd., of Singapore, and Do Hyeong Kwon, described as a resident of South Korea and Singapore, at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

The Wine Investment Fund Ltd.: Notice of Winding Up Petition

Legal Notice about the filing of a winding up petition by the Bermuda Monetary Authority against The Wine Investment Fund Limited (in Provisional Liquidation) at Bermuda Supreme Court, published by The Royal Gazette on February 13th, 2023.

SEC v. Kraken: Complaint (‘Unregistered Crypto Securities’)

Complaint alleging "the illegal unregistered offer and sale of securities involving the staking of crypto assets" in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Payward Ventures Inc., of Delaware, and Payward Trading Ltd., of the British Virgin Islands, both doing business as Kraken, at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

Hyperrr.com GmbH: Public Warning (Switzerland)

Public Warning by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority that Hyperrr.com GmbH is "suspected of conducting unauthorised activities in the financial market".

SEC v. Avraham Eisenberg: Complaint (‘$116M Crypto Fraud’)

Complaint alleging the defendant "drained approximately $116 million from a crypto asset trading platform known as Mango Markets after manipulating the trading price and volume of the “MNGO token,” a so-called “governance token” of Mango Markets that was purchased and sold as a crypto asset security" in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Avraham Eisenberg at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Nexo Capital Inc.: $22.5M Fine (‘Unregistered Crypto Offering’)

Administrative Order by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission imposing a civil money penalty of $22.5 million on Nexo Capital Inc., described as a Cayman Islands-domiciled provider of "crypto asset-related financial products and services", for an unregistered securities offering.

Crowd Tech Ltd. et al: Suspension & Prohibition (Cyprus)

Public Notice by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission that it has imposed restrictions on Petros Zachariades regarding Crowd Tech Ltd., suspending him from exercising" voting rights" and prohibiting his involvement in "management duties".

Karl Cini: Prohibition (Malta)

Public Notice by the Malta Financial Services Authority that it has prohibited Karl Cini "from accepting any new positions" while "criminal proceedings against Mr. Cini are ongoing".

Brian Tonna: Prohibition (Malta)

Public Notice by the Malta Financial Services Authority that it has prohibited Brian Tonna "from accepting any new positions" while "criminal proceedings against Mr. Tonna are ongoing".

SEC v. Stephen Braverman: Braverman’s Motion to Dismiss (‘$37M Crypto Fraud’)

Defendant Stephen Braverman's Motion to Dismiss in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Arbitrade Ltd., of Bermuda; Cryptobontix Inc., of Canada; Troy R.J. Hogg, of Canada; James L. Goldberg, Stephen L. Braverman, and Max W. Barber, as Defendants, and SION Trading FZE, of the United Arab Emirates, as Relief Defendant, at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

SEC v. Terrance Reagan et al: Complaint

Complaint alleging securities fraud involving broker-dealers in the United Kingdom and USA in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Terrance Reagan and Nathaniel Clay at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

GFG Ltd.: £280K Fine (Guernsey)

Public Notice by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission that it has imposed a fine of £280,000 on GFG Limited (in Voluntary Liquidation) for "the firm’s failure to meet the minimum criteria for licensing under the Protection of Investors (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2020".