Breaking: SEC Files Lawsuit Against Crypto Investor Ian Belina
Ian Balina, an influential crypto investor and founder of Token Metrics, is facing legal action from the SEC. The regulatory watchdog alleges that the renowned crypto media personality engaged in the offering and promotion of “unregistered securities.”
The lawsuit alleges that Ian Balina promoted an unregistered security
The Securities and Exchange Commission filed the complaint in a United States District Court for the Western District of Texas on Monday. According to the complaint, the SEC accuses Balina of offering and promoting SPRK tokens which it classifies as securities in 2018 without prior registration.
SPRK is the native token of the blockchain cloud network Sparkster. The crypto entity amassed a whopping $30M in its initial coin offering (ICO) in 2018. Several investors jumped on the SPRK train following Ian Balina’s aggressive promotion of the asset. Notwithstanding, the token crashed by over 90%, resulting in millions in losses.
Balina was at the receiving end of the heat from aggrieved investors following the crash. This is considering his influence in the space then. Four years later, the SEC brings up a case against Balina. The watchdog alleged that Balina failed to reveal the remuneration he received for his promotion of the asset.
The SEC demands that the crypto influencer disgorge all gains gotten from SPRK
The SEC mentioned that Balina’s acts of promotion of SPRK violated several provisions of the Securities Act of 1933. According to the SEC, Balina will persist in his acts of violations if a court does not legally restrict him. The SEC further alleged that Balina received $5M to promote the token.
Among several demands, the SEC requests that Balina relinquish all “ill-gotten gains” from the acts of promotion of SPRK. Additionally, the SEC demands that the court restricts Balina from engaging in the offer or sale of any securities, including crypto assets.
Balina who used his massive influence to promote the SPRK token in 2018 noted that he was as well hoodwinked, when the token crashed. As investors filed a lawsuit against Sparkster in 2019, Ian Balina publicly declared that he would be joining in the suit.
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