SEC freezes property of DEBT Field, alleging $50M node license ‘sham’

The US Securities and Trade Fee has obtained a brief asset freeze towards Utah-based crypto firm Digital Licensing Inc, accusing the agency of perpetrating a $50 million fraudulent crypto scheme.

On Aug. 3 the SEC announced it had obtained a brief asset freeze, restraining order, and different emergency reduction towards Digital Licensing Inc., which was working as “DEBT Field.”

The agency’s 4 principals, Jason Anderson, his brother Jacob Anderson, Schad Brannon, and Roydon Nelsonand, and 13 different defendants had been included within the enforcement motion.

The SEC has alleged the agency was promoting unregistered securities since March 2021, which it referred to as “node licenses.”

On its web site, DEBT Field claims to be a decentralized eco-friendly blockchain “the place crypto meets commodities.” It claims to promote “software program mining licenses” which should be activated earlier than they start mining.

Each day rewards are promised by way of plenty of “initiatives” that seem like linked to numerous industries resembling actual property, commodities, agriculture, and expertise.

The agency has 30,000 X (Twitter) followers and was nonetheless lively up till Aug. 3. It has a local token referred to as DEBT which has tanked 52% for the reason that SEC motion.

In its grievance, the SEC mentioned the agency falsely claimed that these “nodes” would generate crypto tokens by mining and that revenue-generating companies would drive up the token values, leading to large positive factors for traders.

We obtained a brief asset freeze, restraining order, and different emergency reduction towards DEBT Field and its 4 principals, Jason Anderson, his brother Jacob Anderson, Schad Brannon, and Roydon Nelson in reference to a fraudulent scheme to promote crypto asset securities.

— U.S. Securities and Trade Fee (@SECGov) August 3, 2023

In an announcement, the SEC referred to as the node licenses a “sham” supposed to obscure the truth that the whole provide was created by the corporate utilizing blockchain code.

Tracy Combs, director of the SEC’s Salt Lake Regional Workplace, mentioned:

“We allege that DEBT Field and its principals lied to traders about just about each materials side of their unregistered providing of securities, together with by falsely stating that they had been engaged in crypto asset mining,”

The defendants additionally allegedly lied in regards to the revenues of companies supposedly rising the token values, in line with the SEC.

Associated: Cryptocurrency versus the SEC: A fight for fair digital investing

The SEC is searching for everlasting injunctions, return of ill-gotten positive factors, and civil penalties towards the agency.

Cointelegraph reached out to Digital Licensing Inc. for remark however didn’t obtain a direct response.

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