BlockFi will pay a $100 million settlement to the SEC and 32 states.
Illustration: Christopher T. Fong/Protocol
BulletinsBlockFi will pay $100 million penalty in SEC crackdown on crypto lending
Gary Gensler has made his first big move in crypto regulation.
February 14, 2022
BlockFi will pay a $100 million penalty for offering and selling a crypto lending product that the SEC says is illegal.
BlockFi failed to register its BlockFi Interest Accounts lending offering and violated “ the registration provisions of Investment Company Act of 1940,” the SEC said.
The company agreed to pay a $50 million settlement to the SEC and another $50 million in fines to 32 states. BlockFi did not admit or deny the SEC’s findings.
BlockFi executives led by CEO Zac Prince said in a statement that the settlement represented “a path forward to regularity clarity." The company has 60 days to bring its crypto lending products into compliance with existing laws, the SEC said.