US SEC Frames Charges Against Thor Technologies Over $2.6 Million Unregistered Coins Offering: Report

The SEC has alleged that no development work was done on the Thor platform during the time of offering tokens.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has framed charges against Thor Technologies and its founders for indulging in an unregistered securities offering on December 26. According to a report by Bitcoin.com, the organisation allegedly minted and sold tokens to raise funds for its gig economy in 2018. Although the development of those tokens had not commenced during that time. The media reported that the company's co-founder and CEO David Chin, and other co-founder and former CTO, Mathew Moravec, were found to be conducting an unregistered offering of securities through an initial coin offering (ICO).

Chin and his firm stand accused of selling Thor Tokens to the public for raising funds for his business operations. It was expected to develop a software platform for gig economy workers and related firms, according to SEC complaint details.

The regulator has mentioned all details about the digital assets that were marketed as investment opportunities. The sale of tokens was encouraged with an aim to increase their value and claims that they would soon be listed on cryptocurrency trading platforms.

The SEC has alleged that no development work was done on the Thor platform during the time of offering tokens. It also alleged that the tokens could not be utilised anywhere else. Not just that, the sale which raised about $2.6 million in fiat and crypto from investors, was kept unregistered with the SEC. This was done despite the fact that they did not fall under the exempted category.

The current complaint has been filed in the US District Court of the Northern District of Carolina. The SEC wants injunctive relief, return of the ill-gotten gains with interest, and civil penalties on the firm.

Mathew Moravec, who too was involved in the sale and offer of the unregistered tokens, has consented to go for settlement with the Commission. This could mean a judgement ordering him to disgorge $407,103 with an imposed interest of $72,209.45. These will also include a civil penalty of $95,000 for him. In addition to these, a ban on participating in any crypto offerings will be imposed on him for at least three years.

These developments have surfaced in the public domain after SEC Chairman Gary Gensler stressed the significance of ensuring crypto securities tokens issuers into compliance, earlier this month. He said, "Nothing about the crypto markets is incompatible with the securities laws." Gensler also highlighted the associated risks with the market.

Disclaimer: Crypto products and NFTs are unregulated and can be highly risky. There may be no regulatory recourse for any loss from such transactions. Cryptocurrency is not a legal tender and is subject to market risks. Readers are advised to seek expert advice and read offer document(s) along with related important literature on the subject carefully before making any kind of investment whatsoever. Cryptocurrency market predictions are speculative and any investment made shall be at the sole cost and risk of the readers.