Nexo Failed to Register as Required by New York Law
and Lied to Investors about Their Registration
NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James today joined seven state securities regulators in suing cryptocurrency companies Nexo Inc. and Nexo Capital Inc. (Nexo), for failing to register with the state as securities and commodities brokers or dealers and for lying to investors about their registration status. Despite warnings from the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) to register as a securities and commodities broker or dealer, Nexo failed to register and misrepresented to investors that they are a licensed and registered platform. In New York, entities engaging in the offer, purchase, or sale of securities or commodities, including cryptocurrency platforms, must register with OAG if they are operating within the state or offering their products to New Yorkers. Through her lawsuit, Attorney General James seeks disgorgement of any revenues derived from Nexo’s unlawful conduct and restitution for investors.
“Cryptocurrency platforms are not exceptional; they must register to operate just like other investment platforms,” said Attorney General James. “Nexo violated the law and investors’ trust by falsely claiming that it is a licensed and registered platform. Nexo must stop its unlawful operations and take necessary action to protect its investors.”
Today’s lawsuit — filed in New York County State Supreme Court — alleges that Nexo promoted and sold securities in the form of an interest-bearing virtual currency account called the Earn Interest Product with promises of high returns for participating investors, while failing to register as a securities broker or dealer as required by state law. In addition, the lawsuit alleges that Nexo engaged in the unregistered purchase and sale of securities and commodities through its virtual currency trading platform called the Nexo Exchange, and misled investors by falsely representing…
