David vs. Goliath: Kin takes on the SEC
Recently on The Coin Boys, a cryptocurrency podcast, we discussed Kin’s decision to take on the SEC in court. We’ve made it a policy on our show to not discuss any SEC news until there is actual news, but we made an exception to this story because it is something we should all be watching.
Just to clarify, nothing has happened yet this has just been an announcement made by Ted Livingston, the CEO of Kik which is using the Kin token on their messaging app.
As of late the SEC has been doing a nice shakeup of the crypto space. In some cases for the good by taking down several scams. In other cases, a number that I would hope is small, good projects with the best intentions and not enough funds have also been caught up in this mess. Forever cementing the slogan of the US Government: “Helping our citizens is our job, but taking money is our REAL job.”
The SEC has decided to go after Kik with it’s Kin ICO. Kin, who according to Livingston’s blog posted on Medium, has been open and compliant with any and all information the SEC has asked about. Afterwards the SEC decided that Kin is a security and has violated SEC law.
It is at this point when other projects who are decently funded, are able to settle out of court in order to get the SEC off their back. Saving the project more money than they would have spent in court fees. The problem with this is, the SEC has yet to clearly define laws for ICO’s, and settling out of court just allows the SEC to continue this way. They have had plenty of time and knowledge on the subject but seem to be taking the “Let’s see what we can get away with” approach.
Canada to the rescue!
Canada, America’s better and more accomplished younger brother, is home to Kik and they are not taking this lying down. They have decided to do the right thing and fight. Probably not the cheapest solution to the problem, but the solution many other projects need.
Win or lose, it will force the SEC into clarifying what their rules are in front of judges. Which should allow other businesses to comply more easily.
Kik is hoping for a victory of course because they are claiming that Kin is not a security, but a currency, which does not fall under the SEC at all. Should they win this will help countless other projects that are in a similar boat. In all honesty if I were any of those projects, I would be throwing whatever resources I can to Kik and help them. This fight will be pricey.
We are going to keep an eye on this case because this is something that will certainly change things in the space, good or bad. What do you think about this case? Will it get the SEC to finally clear up their laws, or with it fizzle out of existence? Feel free to email us, tweet us, comment below, or give us a call at 424-372-7437!
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