The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is investigating major US cryptocurrency exchange Kraken over offers of unregistered securities to US investors.
Investigation at advanced stage, Kraken likely to settle with SEC in coming days, Bloomberg mentioned Wednesday, according to informed sources.
Kraken is under scrutiny for a stock offering
According to the report, the regulator is investigating whether the cryptocurrency exchange violated securities laws in its offerings to US clients. The status has not been made public, so the codes and offers under review are unknown.
The regulator’s ruling may prompt other crypto firms to approach the SEC for registry deals, as the agency has always recommended.
In December, while speaking to Bloomberg, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler urged cryptocurrency firms to register with the SEC because the runway was falling short.
Gensler firmly believes that almost all crypto assets except Bitcoin are securities. He reiterated that most cryptocurrency exchanges offer unregistered securities, which violates federal laws.
Not the first
Kraken’s trouble with the Securities and Exchange Commission isn’t the first stock exchange rodeo with US regulators. Late last year, the company settled with the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to help users in Iran evade sanctions imposed on them.
Office of Foreign Assets Control Discover Kraken has processed nearly $1.68 million in 826 transactions for Iranian users despite US sanctions. like mentioned past encrypted potatoesThe cryptocurrency exchange agreed to settle the case with a fine of more than $362,000 and an additional $100,000 to comply with the sanctions. The fine could have been more than $272 million but it has been reduced thanks to Kraken’s compliance.
Meanwhile, the exchange has joined a growing list of crypto firms under regulatory investigation by the SEC regarding their securities offerings. The list includes Coinbase, her former employee shipped with two others in an insider trading case.
US SEC Post Kraken Investigates Unregistered Securities Sale: Report appeared first on CryptoPotato.