Too early to talk of settlement in fraudulent ICO case against Opporty, SEC says
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has updated the New York Eastern District Court on its case targeting Sergii “Sergey” Grybniak and Opporty International, Inc.
Let’s recall that this action, launched in January 2020, concerns a fraudulent initial initial coin offering (ICO) of unregistered digital asset securities. As alleged in the SEC’s complaint, Grybniak and his company Opporty International, Inc. raised approximately $600,000 from nearly 200 investors in an ICO of Opporty’s unregistered digital asset securities called “OPP Tokens.”
On October 20, 2020, the parties in this case submitted a stats report at the Court. The document, seen by FX News Group, advises the Court on the progress of discovery and settlement negotiations.
The parties plan to schedule depositions soon and to complete fact discovery on or before March 15, 2021. The parties have agreed in principle to conduct depositions remotely due to safety concerns arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since the Initial Conference held on May 19, 2020, the parties’ counsel have met telephonically at least three times and have exchanged several e-mails discussing a potential resolution to this case. However, at this stage of the case, with deposition discovery yet to commence, the parties do not believe that a settlement conference or other alternative dispute resolution measures would be productive.
The SEC’s complaint charges Grybniak and Opporty with violating the antifraud provisions of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and the registration provisions of Sections 5(a) and (c) of the Securities Act, and also charges Grybniak with aiding and abetting Opporty’s violations.
The regulator seeks permanent injunctions, conduct-based injunctions prohibiting the offering of digital or other securities, disgorgement plus interest, and civil penalties against Grybniak and Opporty, as well as an officer-and-director bar against Grybniak.