In the last decade, blockchain and distributed ledger technology has had an immense impact on a multitude of industries, with 84% of organizations experimenting with the technology, with more than half (52%) of blockchain projects in the research and development phase, according to the PwC Global Blockchain Survey. The industries making important strides forward with blockchain include financial services, manufacturing, energy and utilities, health care, as well as government sectors, but the potential of the technology is limitless. Ultimately, any business that is looking to simplify the processing method of large volumes of transactions while ensuring the verifiability of these …

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a complaint against a New York-based man and two of his companies. The SEC alleges that these entities conducted a fraudulent and unregistered ICO from late 2017 to 2018, and is requesting that a U.S. District Court issue an emergency freeze on the defendants' related assets. Hindenburg Research shared the SEC’s filing for a jury trial in a post on Aug. 12. According to the document, the commission is formally filing a complaint against Reginald Middleton, the New York company Veritaseum Inc. and the Delaware-based company Veritaseum LLC. Prayer for …

Token generation events are raising twice as much capital as conventional equity fundings for the blockchain sector. According to an Aug. 1 report from analytics firm teQatlas, token generation events (TGEs) — an alternative term for initial coin offerings — raised $2.095 billion in H1 2019, as compared with the $1.248 billion raised by blockchain firms through venture capital (VC) investment. TeQatlas’ report is based on an analysis of roughly 2,500 blockchain firms backed by 1,800 investors via both traditional and alternative funding instruments — such as equity deals, TGEs and initial exchange offerings (IEOs). Token offerings saw $15 billion …

The Bureau of Securities in New Jersey has issued two emergency orders to the companies Zoptax and Unocall to end their initial coin offerings (ICOs). The Bureau alleges that the token offerings qualify as fraudulent unregistered securities offerings. The Office of the Attorney General in New Jersey announced the Bureau's orders in a news release on Aug. 7. In the case of Zoptax, the report states that the company is offering the cryptocurrency Zoptax Coins through a website-conducted ICO. The website apparently states that the ICO has a soft cap of $500,000, as well as a hard cap goal of …

In late July 2019, Sony Financial Ventures joined a $14.5 million funding round for Bitcoin (BTC) bank Bitwala. Back in 2017 and 2018, such a figure might not have made many headlines, as crypto startups were raking in hundreds of millions of dollars in initial coin offerings (ICOs). The ICO boom has, however, stalled significantly, with fundraising figures for 2019 a far cry from the massive amounts earned by projects in the two years prior. Many of the tokens that came about during the ICO mania have also lost most of their post-offering value. Since the late 2017 crypto mania, …

The Zambian Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) CEO, Philip Chitalu, has warned the public that cryptocurrency OnyxCoin creator Kwakoo is not licensed to give investment advice or solicit funds, from within and outside the country alike. The Lusaka Times relayed the Zambian SEC head’s warnings in a report on Aug. 2. According to the report, Kwakoo has been promoting Onyxcoin and soliciting investments from the Zambian public. Relatedly, CEO Chitalu notes that Securities Act, No. 41 of 2016 dictates that certain activities — such as Kwakoo’s — require proper licensure in Zambia, unless specifically exempted by law. Moreover, Chitalu noted …

Initial coin offering (ICO) consultant CoinLaunch has agreed to pay $50,000 to the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC), according to documents published on the regulator’s website dated July 24. According to commercial litigator and former programmer Evan Thomas, CoinLaunch was consulted on two ICOs, BCZERO (raising funds for a Czech off-road truck racing team) and ECOREAL (raising funds for a Portuguese resort), both of which were found to be securities. CoinLaunch reportedly created the tokens, white papers and websites, advised on the sale structure and made introductions, including to crypto exchanges for listings. According to Thomas, the OSC found that the …

According to a filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, the Chinese company The9 Ltd bought 5,297,257 tokens during a Telegram initial token offering in January 2018 for $2 million dollars. The filing also states that The9 has invested in multiple blockchain-based companies as of 2018. According to a report by Russian business news agency RBC on July 24, this document is evidence of The9 as the first publicly-known foreign investor. Per RBC, Telegram’s initial coin offering (ICO) investors are largely unknown. Few details about ICO participants forthcoming During the first ICO, 81 investors contributed to raise a …

Financial Services Commission (FSC) chairman Choi Jong-ku, a governmental official in South Korea who took a hard line on domestic initial coin offerings (ICOs), has tendered his resignation. The Korea Times reported the chairman’s decision on July 18. "I recently tendered my resignation to President Moon Jae-in to widen the scope of his choice before the expected reshuffle," Choi said. According to the report, officials in the finance sector expected Choi Jong-ku’s resignation, since historically the finance chair does not complete their term in office. There are also reported rumors that Choi will run for a National Assembly seat in …

Bitcoin (BTC) has more than tripled in 2019, moving from under $4,000 at the start of the year and then topping out at a little under $14,000 in June. In the earlier part of 2019, altcoins seemed to be performing strongly, with many calling the trend “altseason.” However, since Bitcoin began its 2019 charge starting with the “April Fool’s day rally,” most altcoins seem to be slipping when compared to the top-ranked cryptocurrency. There is now a growing debate about whether the altcoin market will experience the same massive price gains seen in Bitcoin during this current bullish cycle. Within …

Update, July 20: This article was updated to clarify the fact that the performance of particular cryptocurrency tokens is under evaluation and not the projects backing them. In 2017, the cost of Bitcoin (BTC) reached almost $20,000, and in December 2018, its rate fell to $3,187 per token. Nevertheless, it is a solid price movement for a currency, which was created from nothing about 10 years ago. Bitcoin still dominates the portfolios of most crypto investors and is by far the most popular cryptocurrency, meaning its price is less prone to drops than the rest of the market. This is …

France is poised to approve initial coin offerings (ICO) operators and other crypto businesses with its new regulatory approach to the sector. ‘France is a Precursor’ As Reuters reported on July 16, the new rules — expected to take effect later this month — will enable crypto-related businesses to voluntarily submit themselves to national standards on capital requirements, consumer protection and taxation in return for the regulator’s green light. Anne Marechal — executive director for legal affairs at the Financial Markets Authority (AMF) — told reporters that the bold crypto regulatory agenda from the G7 presidency holder should make France …