Fun

Terraform Labs and Do Kwon found liable for fraud in SEC case

News Feed - 2024-04-06 04:04:50

Turner Wright4 hours agoTerraform Labs and Do Kwon found liable for fraud in SEC caseJurors took a short time to deliberate on the evidence presented by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Terraform Labs before reaching a verdict.818 Total views2 Total sharesListen to article 0:00Breaking newsOwn this piece of crypto historyCollect this article as NFTJoin us on social networksA jury found Terraform Labs and co-founder Do Kwon liable for defrauding investors in its civil case with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.


In an April 5 announcement, SEC Enforcement Director Gurbir Grewal said jurors in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York found Kwon and Terraform liable in the civil enforcement case after a short deliberation. The SEC trial started on March 25 without the attendance of Kwon, who remains in Montenegro as courts determine whether to grant an extradition request from the U.S. or South Korea.


“We are pleased with today’s jury verdict holding Terraform Labs and Do Kwon liable for a massive crypto fraud,” said Grewal. “Terraform Labs and Kwon, its former CEO, deceived investors about the stability of the crypto asset security and so-called algorithmic stablecoin Terra USD, and they further misled investors about whether a popular payment application used Terraform’s blockchain to process and settle payments.”


Grewal cited Terraform’s lack of registration with the regulator as having “very real consequences” for investors, reiterating calls for compliance. During the trial, SEC attorneys likened the platform to a “house of cards” and alleged the company and Kwon lied to investors.


“We are very disappointed with the verdict, which we do not believe is supported by the evidence,” a Terraform Labs spokesperson told Cointelegraph. “We continue to maintain that the SEC does not have the legal authority to bring this case at all, and we are carefully weighing our options and next steps.”


According to the verdict filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on April 5, jurors found Kwon and Terraform liable for six charges. They also determined that the platform acted “recklessly” in making false or misleading statements regarding the offer or sale of TerraUSD (UST), Luna (LUNA) or wLUNA.Source: CourtListener


Terraform Labs collapsed in May 2022 following the instability of its algorithmic stablecoin, UST, and other claims about the blockchain’s use cases. The platform’s failure likely contributed to a major crypto market downturn, leading to bankruptcy filings from firms including FTX, BlockFi and Celsius.


Related:Terra crash anniversary: Community reflects on the lessons learned


The SEC filed its lawsuit against Terra and Kwon in February 2023, alleging the two “orchestrat[ed] a multi-billion dollar crypto asset securities fraud.” The civil case could have far-reaching implications for crypto firms operating in the U.S. — in December, Judge Jed Rakoff granted a partial summary judgment in favor of Terraform regarding the unregistered offer and sale of security-based swaps.


It’s unclear what the verdict could mean for the extradition of Kwon from Montenegro. As of April 5, following a decision from the country’s Supreme Court, his case has been returned to a lower court to determine whether to grant extradition to the U.S. or South Korea. He faces criminal charges in both countries.


Magazine:Lawmakers’ fear and doubt drives proposed crypto regulations in US# Law# SEC# Court# Terra# Regulation# Do KwonAdd reactionRead moreAdvocacy groups warn of ‘adverse repercussions’ for crypto in case against Tornado Cash co-founderTerraform Labs was ‘built on lies’ — SEC at trialMontenegro’s Supreme Court sends Do Kwon’s extradition case back to lower court

News Feed

Griffin Gaming Partners Launches $750 Million Gaming and Web3 Fund
Griffin Gaming Partners Launches $750 Million Gaming and Web3 Fund Griffin Gaming Partners, a venture capital firm specializing in gaming-related investments, has revealed the laun
Goldman Sachs to launch 3 new tokenization products this year: Report
Alex O’Donnell6 hours agoGoldman Sachs to launch 3 new tokenization products this year: ReportThe products could include an RWA marketplace and will focus on the United States and Europe.4284 Total views4 Total sharesL
BNB Coils For Impact: Will $670 Crack Under Pressure?
Reason to trust Strict editorial policy that focuses on accuracy, relevance, and impartiality Created by industry experts and meticulously reviewed The highest standards in reporting and pu
Dogecoin Still In Play As Price Gears Up For Another 600% Run Above $2
Este artículo también está disponible en español. Despite the recent Dogecoin pullback, crypto analyst Javon Markshas provided a bullish outlook for the foremost meme coi
Web3 Metaverse Company Hadean Raises $30 Million in Series A Funding Round Backed by Epic Games and Tencent
Web3 Metaverse Company Hadean Raises $30 Million in Series A Funding Round Backed by Epic Games and Tencent Hadean, a company using computing to scale virtual and metaverse worlds,
Dogecoin Sets The Stage For A Liftoff With Key Reversal Pattern
Reason to trust Strict editorial policy that focuses on accuracy, relevance, and impartiality Created by industry experts and meticulously reviewed The highest standards in reporting and pu
Delivery App Rappi Launches Pilot Project to Accept Crypto Payments in Mexico
Delivery App Rappi Launches Pilot Project to Accept Crypto Payments in Mexico Rappi, one of the biggest delivery companies in Latam, has launched a pilot project with the objective
Shark Tank Star Kevin O’Leary Says Most Crypto Tokens Are Worthless — ‘They’ll Eventually Just Go to Zero’
Shark Tank Star Kevin O"Leary Says Most Crypto Tokens Are Worthless — "They"ll Eventually Just Go to Zero" Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary, aka Mr. Wonderful, says that most
India’s Prime Minister Modi: Digital Rupee Will Strengthen Digital Economy, Revolutionize Fintech
India"s Prime Minister Modi: Digital Rupee Will Strengthen Digital Economy, Revolutionize Fintech India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, says an Indian central bank digital
Sui Developer Mysten Labs Raises $300 Million to Address Web3 Scalability
Sui Developer Mysten Labs Raises $300 Million to Address Web3 Scalability Mysten Labs, developer of a new blockchain project called Sui, raised $300 million in its latest funding r
Digital Euro to Handle ‘Almost Unlimited’ Payments, Estonian Central Bank Says After Test
Digital Euro to Handle ‘Almost Unlimited’ Payments, Estonian Central Bank Says After Test A blockchain-based digital euro would be highly scalable allowing i
South African Banking Regulator: ‘De-risking’ Crypto Firms Potentially Creates ‘Opacity in Financial Conduct’
South African Banking Regulator: "De-risking" Crypto Firms Potentially Creates "Opacity in Financial Conduct" According to the latest guidance note issued by the South African bank