The North Dakota Securities Department issued a decree on the immediate cessation of the activities of the Russian ICO project, which presented itself as Liechtenstein Union Bank AG.
In particular, state authorities found that the Union Bank Payment Coin (UBPC) ICO project directly copied elements of the Union Bank website, including style, graphics, and text design, trying to promote its activities, although it did not have to this permission.
According to the SEC commissioner Karen Tyler, the project thus attracted customers. In particular, the authors of the startup tried to convince users that they are releasing “world’s first security token backed by a fully licensed bank”, and stated that coin is fully secured with fiat currency by the Swiss franc.
“Financial criminals continue to cash in on the hype and excitement around blockchain, crypto assets, and ICOs — investors should be exceedingly cautious when considering a related investment."
It's noteworthy that the IP address of the Union Bank website belongs to Liechtenstein, but UBPC is located in Russia and is registered to a private person, Tyler noted. Since ICOs are sold through the Internet and are actively distributed on social networks, residents of North Dakota may be involved in offers whose organizers are on the same street with them or on the other side of the world.
Earlier it was reported that US regulators banned three ICO projects in a separate region. The decision was made by the North Dakota Securities Department.
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