Former drinks manufacturer-turned-blockchain development company Long Blockchain Corp. has been issued a subpoena by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Bloomberg reported August 1. During a filing today, the company reportedly said that the subpoena, originally dated July 10, requested certain documents from Long Blockchain Corp. The firm declined to provide further details, saying: “The company is fully cooperating with the SEC’s investigation. The company cannot predict or determine whether any proceeding may be instituted by the SEC in connection with the subpoena or the outcome of any proceeding that may be instituted.” Yesterday, the New York-based company announced …

The operator of now defunct Bitcoin (BTC) stock exchange BitFunder has pleaded guilty to federal charges of obstruction of justice and securities fraud, Reuters reports July 23. According to prosecutors, 37-year old Jon Montroll, also known as Ukyo, also pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice, admitting that he provided false balance statements to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in an investigation of the fake 6,000 BTC BitFunder hack in 2013. Montroll, of Saginaw, Texas, operated BitFunder, where users could sell virtual shares of businesses for bitcoins, as well as Bitcoin exchange and depository WeExchange Australia Pty Ltd. Montroll …

According to court documents filed July 3, YouTube has been added as a defendant in a class action lawsuit against BitConnect. The lawsuit was initially filed on January, 24 by six individuals represent by law firm Silver Miller. The claimants state that crypto investment platform BitConnect issued crypto tokens that were unregistered securities, and obtained additional funds through a “wide-ranging Ponzi scheme.” The plaintiffs stated that their personal losses totalled $771,000. BitConnect allegedly used the funds received from new investors to meet the expectations of the existing ones. Per court documents acquired by Cointelegraph, BitConnect and its affiliated parties posted …

Two Nevada citizens agreed to settle a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Security and Exchange Commission (SEC), which accused them of profiting from the illegal sale of stocks of UBI Blockchain Internet Ltd., Bloomberg reported July 2. On Monday, the SEC filed a lawsuit in a New York federal court, accusing Nevada attorney T.J. Jesky and his firm’s manager Mark F. DeStefano of earning around $1.4 million by illegally selling shares in UBI Blockchain Internet Ltd. from December 2017 to January 2018. UBI Blockchain Internet Ltd., formerly known as JA Energy, is a Hong Kong based company engaged in the …

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has received an additional emergency court order to freeze the assets of Dominic Lacroix, owner of PlexCorps, in an ongoing enforcement action, Crowdfund Insider reported June 20. The SEC had previously sued Lacroix for securities fraud and received an emergency asset freeze order in December, 2017. The order was unsealed June 18. The SEC alleges that, since December, Lacroix has been using secret accounts, including an account in his brother’s name which he controlled, to dissipate assets obtained from investors with the PlexCoin ICO. The SEC is looking to collect interest, penalties, as …

An Indian court declared former Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) Nalin Kotadiya a proclaimed offender in connection with a Bitcoin (BTC) extortion case amounting to $1.3 million, Business Standard reported June 18. Judge PG Tamakuwala declared Kotadiya a proclaimed offender or “absconder” under Section 82 of the Code of Criminal Procedure with reference to an application filed by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). Kotadiya “remained untraceable,” even after a warrant was issued for his arrest. The CID initatiated proceedings again, seeking that the court should declare him a proclaimed offender. In India, a proclaimed offender proceeding is a procedure …

The Supreme Court of India declined to grant an interim injunction against the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) circular banning banking services for companies dealing in cryptocurrency, according to a Twitter post by Crypto Kanoon May 11. Crypto Kanoon is a team of Indian lawyers engaged in crypto regulatory analysis and legal awareness. Supreme Court declined to grant interim injunction against RBI banking restriction. Fixed the matter for hearing on 17th May. #bitcoin #RBI https://t.co/bDpQ73cAC9 — Crypto Kanoon (@cryptokanoon) May 11, 2018 11 different representatives from various crypto-related businesses who filed a petition with the Indian Supreme Court sought an …

The Supreme Court of Russia has ordered the St. Petersburg City Court to consider an appeal to the ban of a cryptocurrency information website, Russian Legal Information Agency (RAPSI) reported April 20. In summer 2016, the Vyborgsky District Court of St. Petersburg granted the application of the Prosecution Office and blocked Bitcoininfo.ru website. The court found that information on the website about digital currency Bitcoin, which represents a “virtual payment instrument and a store of value”, to violate the Federal Act “On the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (the Bank of Russia)”. In July 2017, the Oktyabrsky District Court …

In a hearing on Feb. 26, the Moscow Arbitration Court ruled that cryptocurrency funds of a bankrupt debtor cannot be seized as payment to creditors, local media group RBC reports. The court considered an application filed by finance manager Aleksey Leonov, who requested permission to recover funds from a debtor, Ilya Tsarkov, by seizing Tsarkov’s crypto assets. According to RBC, Leonov requested that the court require Tsarkov to provide the password for his cryptocurrency wallet on the website Blockchain.info. The court reviewed documents that proved Tsarkov was in possession of a crypto wallet with Bitcoins, but refused to grant Leonov’s …

“M-Pesa operator Safaricom will not be required to grant access to bitcoin startup BitPesa amid an ongoing legal dispute.” This was the ruling on the 14th of December 2015, by a Kenyan High Court judge. What does this imply for Bitpesa as a company? How does this affect the Bitcoin environment in the sub-region? Is Bitpesa rattled by this development? It has been a series of speculations since the news broke of the joint suit by Lipisha and Bitpesa against Safaricom for the abrupt cut-off from M-Pesa, a platform of Safaricom which served Bitpesa until the 12th of November 2015. …