The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission(SEC) launched a lawsuit against Unicoin Incorporated. The company, headquartered in New York City, and three prominent executives now stand accused of major fraud involving in excess of $100 million and in excess of 5,000 investors.
The SEC charged Unicoin with selling and touting token rights certificates and stocks with false and misleading statements. Executives targeted in the lawsuit include CEO and board chair Alex Konanykhin, board member Silvina Moschini, and former investment chief Alex Dominguez.
The SEC says the executives knowingly misled the public about the company’s assets and registration. Unicoin’s promotional campaigns claimed the Unicoin tokens were supported by valuable global real estate and equity holdings.
The SEC stated these properties held only a small portion of the value Unicoin had promoted. Despite saying it raised more than $3 billion from certificate sales, the company reportedly collected no more than $110 million from the public.
SEC alleges misleading statements by devlin
The SEC said Unicoin aggressively advertised its investment offerings across high-visibility locations such as airports, taxis, and television. These efforts targeted unsuspecting investors by presenting the certificates as low-risk, asset-backed, and SEC-registered, though none of these claims were true.
Alone, Konanykhin sold in excess of 37.9 million certificates to individuals the company has previously barred from its market. The action could have enabled Unicoin to bypass significant registration requirements and reach a wider class of investors.
According to the SEC, Konanykhin used sales to market special deals and build demand. The suit also targets general counsel Richard Devlin, who is accused of making false representations in reports presented to investors.
Devlin has agreed to an injunction that entails a $37,500 penalty, as well as court-imposed restrictions. The SEC is pursuing lifetime bans and penalties for managers. At the same time, it is working to recover lost funds for the harmed investors.
