SEC sues BitClout founder Nader Al-Naji with fraud – CoinJournal | CPT PPP Coverage

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• Nader Al-Naji is the founder of BitClout, a blockchain social media platform that raised $257 million in a token offering.
• SEC’s charges relate to violations of the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission has charged Nader Al-Naji (aka “Diamondhands”) for fraud and the sale of unregistered securities.

Nader Al-Naji is the founder of BitClout, a cryptocurrency social media platform that raised $257 million in its native token’s ICO.

Al-Naji arrested

While he allegedly told investors that the money wouldn’t go into personal use or to pay BitClout team members, Al-Naji went on to spend over $7 million of the money on personal expenditures, including on rent for a Beverly Hills mansion. He also gave cash gifts to family members, the SEC raid in a press release on Tuesday.

“As alleged in our complaint, Al-Naji attempted to evade the federal securities laws and defraud the investing public, mistakenly believing that ‘being “fake” decentralized generally confuses regulators and deters them from going after you,’” Gurbir S. Grewal, the director of the SEC’s division of enforcement, said in a statement.

SEC’s charges against Al-Naji relate to violation of the provisions of the Securities Act of 1933 and f the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

The US Department has also charged the BitClout founder, with the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York announcing charges against Al-Naji.

‘Diamondhands’ was arrested on Saturday, with the DOJ presenting him before court on Monday.