The United States Securities and Exchange Commission has brought civil charges against SafeMoon LLC and other related individuals and entities for allegedly engaging in a fraud scheme involving the unregistered offer and sale of a particular crypto asset named Safemoon.
In its enforcement complaint, the SEC contends that Defendants represented to investors that the price of the token would skyrocket to the moon, but rather than achieving profitability, they effectively erased billions in market capitalization, removed crypto assets exceeding $200 in value and misused investor capital for their own personal financial benefit.
In pitching the Safemoon token, investors were advised that the funds were securely locked and were unable to be withdrawn, including by the defendants, while in a “liquidity pool” designed to provide liquidity for trading in the crypto asset, the SEC alleged. Yet, the SEC maintained significant tranches of the liquidity pool were not locked as represented, and the defendants proceeded to steal millions in order to buy sports cars, luxurious homes and engage in high-end travel.
The SEC further contends in its lawsuit that the SafeMoon token’s price spiked by more than 55,000 percent from March 12 through April 20, 2021, ultimately hitting a market capitalization beyond $5.7 billion prior to its price sinking by almost 50 percent when, on April 20, 2021, the public learned the truth: that SafeMoon’s liquidity pool was not locked as promised and represented. After the price imploded, two of the individual defendants are alleged to have used stolen funds to make large purchases of Safemoon in an attempt to inflate its price and thereby effectively manipulate the market. As a further alleged manipulative act, one of the defendants also allegedly utilized a trading platform account he opened to purchase and sell Safemoon to create the impression of legitimate market activity, commonly known as wash trading.
The SEC’s complaint charges violations of the anti-fraud and anti-manipulation provisions of the federal securities laws. The Department of Justice also joined the fray, filing a parallel criminal case.
Investors were allegedly told their investment would soar to the moon, bit instead they were apparently just taken for a ride. If it sounds to good too be true…
SEC Crypto Fraud Defense Lawyer
SEC attorney David Chase is a former SEC prosecutor and now a SEC defense lawyer who represents individuals in SEC crypto fraud investigations nationwide. You may contact him toll-free at: 800-760-0912 or e-mail at: david@davidchaselaw.com, and can visit the Firm’s website for more information and content at: www.securitiesfrauddefense.com.
