There Are Ongoing Lawsuits against Controversial ICO Companies
There are a few good platform models that are hoping to prove the fact that the blockchain actually has the predictable analytic methods in marketing.
Patricia Bond
As cryptocurrency has become more popular There has been an increase of Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) that have raised more than $2 billion in the last year. However, the growing popularity of ICOs comes the rise of lawsuits filed by people who aren’t happy with the choices made by the companies involved. In this blog we will examine several of the more controversial lawsuits and the possible impact on investors.
The first instance to look at is the DAO lawsuit, which was filed in 2017 against an Ethereum founded company that had given tokens to investors as part of their investment strategy. Investors claimed that they were misled in investing because they were unaware that their funds were going be used to finance projects without any control or responsibility. This led to a multi-million-dollar settlement between the DAO as well as its shareholders and has established the precedent in other token sales to make more clear regarding their projects prior to selling tokens.
The other case is Tezos another significant cryptocurrency project that was announced in 2017 and has raised $232 million in its ICO. A class action lawsuit was filed shortly after the launch by investors who were dissatisfied with the project’s early investors. complained of poor management of funds as well as failure to meet deadlines to deliver tokens. The lawsuit is ongoing however it has caused a significant blow to the confidence of investors in the project, and could eventually lead to a settlement of thousands of dollars.
The third scenario is Block.One which is an Ethereum-based platform to develop Decentralized Applications (DApps). BlockOne’s ICO has raised more than $4 billion which makes it an ICO that was among the top public fundraising round ever documented. The day after the launch it was discovered that the SEC began to investigate BlockOne in connection with possible breaches of the securities law such as insufficient disclosure of information during the process of selling tokens and possible market manipulation techniques within the trading platform. The investigation is still ongoing in court however they could result in massive fines should they be found guilty of the SEC.
There is also Centra Tech which recently settled with its investors after being accused of fraud arising from an alleged criminal scheme that involved securities violations wire fraud, securities violations, money laundering, and lying on regulatory filings regarding the ICO launch in the year 2017. Centra’s settlement deal included the payment of $25 million dollars to investors who had lost money, as well as refunded all investments made on their website after April 2017, when they began selling illegal tokens by means of unregistered security offerings, without adequate disclosures or documents for offering..
These cases show the importance of ICO organizations and companies to fully divulge information about their activities prior to launching token sales even if it could decrease profits or hinder growth potential. Investors can make educated decisions regarding where to invest their money. When more legal settlements are announced from these lawsuits and other future lawsuits against ICO businesses investors are likely to expect higher standards from such projects before investing in them, creating a more favorable environment for businesses that wish to conduct their business right when they launch token offerings to come!
The legal consequences of the above cases will have far-reaching consequences for investors in ICOs or projects. For instance, investors could be more conscious of the risks and benefits of taking part with an ICO and may be demanding stricter disclosure from companies prior to investing. Additionally, any business or project planning to launch an ICO must take further steps to ensure that their tokens are legally declared securities by the local regulatory authorities in order to prevent lawsuits in the future.
Furthermore, it is crucial to keep in mind that the settlements in these lawsuits could be a reason to discourage investors from investing funds into these types or investments in the near future. It could also have a huge effect on the cryptocurrency market in general, since less people are willing to invest could result in lower demand and price.
The court cases also serve as an important warning to anyone who is considering the investment of an ICO Make sure you do your research before investing. Make sure that you are aware of what you’re putting yourself into. Be sure to read all document that you are offered thoroughly, and make sure you ask questions if the information isn’t understood, and only invest the amount you’re able to risk losing. If you follow these guidelines and knowing the possible legal implications of taking part in an ICO investors will be more protected from any future legal dispute arising from token sales.
Promotion Practices of Successful ICO Companies