SEC gets serious about hedge funds

For the first time, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has taken retaliatory action against a cryptocurrency hedge fund for violating securities laws.

On Tuesday, the SEC demanded a $200,000 fine from Crypto Asset Management and company founder Timothy Enneking for organizing the fund without proper regulatory approval. In addition to the fine, the SEC issued a letter of suspension and subsequent termination of all company activities.

Enneking reportedly raised $3.6 million from 44 investors and managed more than $36 million in assets by the end of 2017. However, according to the SEC, the California-based La Jolla fund failed to register with the commission.

According to the reports, Crypto Asset Management also misled its clients by claiming that it was “the first regulated cryptocurrency fund in the United States” and also stating that the exchange was licensed by the SEC.

In a statement to CNBC, Enneking said that “this information is out of date” and that the fund’s team is currently making every effort to comply with SEC requirements.

“We fully complied with all SEC requirements immediately after they reported their claims to us.”

On the same day, a federal judge ruled that two more fraudulent ICOs can be treated as securities cases, which makes it possible to prosecute their creators under criminal law. 

It appears that American regulators are tightening control over cryptocurrency businesses and are trying to set an important precedent. 

According to sludgefeed.com