SEC Accuses Unicoin of $100 Million Fraud

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged Unicoin and three of its executives with fraudulently offering certificates for its token and shares.

The lawsuit names the following individuals:

• Chairman and CEO Alex Konanykhin;
• former head and current board member Silvina Moschini;
• former Chief Investment Officer Alex Dominguez.

According to the SEC, the company made unverified promises to “thousands of investors” that its future tokens would be backed by billions of dollars in real assets, including real estate and stakes in companies at the IPO stage.

The Commission’s statement claims that Unicoin asserted:

• sales of certificates amounting to over $3 billion, while it raised no more than $110 million;
• registration of its products with the SEC, which was not true.

The alleged fraud was promoted through a large-scale campaign, including advertisements in airports, on thousands of New York taxis, television, and social media. According to the Commission, this helped persuade over 5,000 investors to purchase Unicoin certificates.

The regulator accused the defendants of violating anti-fraud provisions of federal law. Additional claims against the company and Konanykhin pertain to securities law regulations.

The SEC seeks the return of ill-gotten gains, reimbursement of legal costs, and civil penalties.

The lawsuit also accuses Unicoin’s legal counsel Richard Devlin of fraud. Without admitting or denying the allegations, he agreed to pay a $37,500 fine.

In April, Konanykhin informed investors that the company rejected an attempt by the SEC to negotiate terms to end the investigation, calling the terms “unacceptable.”