Operation Cryptosweep among largest ever coordinated efforts
More than 40 state and provincial regulators have joined forces against operators of fraudulent Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs), cryptocurrency-related investment products, and those behind them, across the US and Canada.
Operation Cryptosweep is one of the largest ever coordinated series of enforcement actions taken by regulators across North America and included provincial regulators in BC, Nova Scotia, Quebec, and New Brunswick.
It follows the organization of a taskforce by the North American Securities Administrators Association in April.
“The persistently expanding exploitation of the crypto ecosystem by fraudsters is a significant threat to Main Street investors in the United States and Canada, and NASAA members are committed to combating this threat,” said Joseph P. Borg, NASAA President and Director of the Alabama Securities Commission. “Despite a series of public warnings from securities regulators at all levels of government, cryptocriminals need to know that state and provincial securities regulators are taking swift and effective action to protect investors from their schemes and scams.”
“Operation Cryptosweep,” has to date resulted in nearly 70 inquiries and investigations and 35 pending or completed enforcement actions related to ICOs or cryptocurrencies since the beginning of May.
NASAA members are involved in investigations into many more.
Know the risks says NASAA
As well as taking action against rogue operators, the coordinated approach aims to raise awareness among investors of the risks involved in ICOs and other crypto products.
“Not every ICO or cryptocurrency-related investment is fraudulent, but we urge investors to approach any initial coin offering or cryptocurrency-related investment product with extreme caution,” Borg said.
There has been a steep rise in the cryptocurrency market with the NASAA taskforce finding approximately 30,000 crypto-related domain name registrations, the vast majority of which appeared in 2017 and 2018.
“The actions announced today are just the tip of the iceberg,” warned Borg.
