SEC Charges Kik (KIN) for Running Unregistered ICO, Could Clarify Crypto Regulations

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission announced today that it is suing Kik Interactive Inc. for conducting an illegal $100 million ICO. The SEC claims Kik sold tokens to U.S. investors without registering their offer and sale as required by U.S. securities laws. As a result, Kik's ICO in 2017 is considered an unregistered sale of securities. Kik is a free messaging app made by Canadian company Kik Interactive. The app has around 300 million users and is particularly popular among teenagers. One report from 2016 indicated that 40% of American teenagers were using Kik. In 2017, Kik announced plans to launch its own ICO. The company planned to sell 'Kin' tokens to the public. The SEC claims Kik made this decision after the company "had lost money for years on its sole product, an online messaging application." The SEC filed the complaint in the Southern District of New York on Tuesday, claiming that Kik violated