US Shuts Down ‘Fast-Moving’ ICO Fraud
A brand-new cybersecurity unit of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is going after a Canadian man it says is behind a scheme to defraud investors by promising a speedy, 13-fold profit.
From Forbes:
It obtained an emergency asset freeze against Dominic Lacroix, whom it called a "recidivist Quebec securities law violator," his partner Sabrina Paradis-Royer and PlexCorps. It also filed charges against LaCroix and PlexCorps alleging that they sold securities claiming investments in PlexCoin would bring profits of 1,354% profit in less than 29 days.
Since August, PlexCoin had raised $15 million from investors both in the U.S. and beyond. According to Coinmarketcap, the price plunged from 15 cents Sunday to as low as 5 cents Monday.
The amount of money raised in ICOs in 2017 is about $3.5 billion, compared to $295 million in all previous years combined, according to CoinDesk.
- Aaron Goldstein, Gambling911.com