The top financial watchdog is going after the ICO market with a wave of subpoenas
REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
- The Securities and Exchange Commission is going after the red-hot market for initial coin offerings, according to the Wall Street Journal.
- The financial regulator issued a wave of subpoenas, according to the Journal.
The Securities and Exchange Commission is going after the red-hot market for initial coin offerings, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal.
The Journal reported Wednesday that the SEC issued "scores of subpoenas and information requests" to folks associated with initial coin offering projects. The Journal cited unidentified people familiar with the matter. The SEC declined to comment to the WSJ.
SEC head Jay Clayton has not been shy about the agency's intention to sniff out fraud and non-compliant activity in the booming market for ICOs. During an address to the US Senate, Clayton said that the majority of ICOs have been securities.
"There should be no misunderstanding about the law," Clayton said in prepared remarks. "When investors are offered and sold securities - which to date ICOs have largely been - they are entitled to the benefits of state and federal securities laws and sellers and other market participants must follow these laws."
Initial coin offerings - a sort of crypto-twist on the initial public offering process - allow companies to raise money by issuing their own token. They've allowed companies spanning financial services to gaming to solicit millions of dollars from investors. Telegram, a messaging app operator, for instance is trying to raise more than $2 billion from a token sale.
Companies raised $1.5 billion from ICOs in January 2018, according to data from fintech analytics provider Autonomous NEXT. More than $5 billion was raised in 2017.
Read the full story over at The Wall Street Journal.
Get the latest Bitcoin price here.>>
The Bitcoin 101 Report by the Business Insider Intelligence Research Team.
Get the Report Now »
- A centenarian who starts her day with gentle exercise and loves walks shares 5 longevity tips, including staying single
- A couple accidentally shipped their cat in an Amazon return package. It arrived safely 6 days later, hundreds of miles away.
- FSSAI in process of collecting pan-India samples of Nestle's Cerelac baby cereals: CEO
- India's e-commerce market set to skyrocket as the country's digital economy surges to USD 1 Trillion by 2030
- Top 5 places to visit near Rishikesh
- Indian economy remains in bright spot: Ministry of Finance
- A surprise visit: Tesla CEO Elon Musk heads to China after deferring India visit
- Unemployment among Indian youth is high, but it is transient: RBI MPC member