Kik Accuses the SEC of Manipulation regarding ‘Kin’ case

One of the biggest roadblocks to the widespread adoption of cryptocurrency is the fact that various regulatory bodies have either not recognized cryptocurrency as a valid means of payment or have not set up proper regulations and definitions for various crypto terms and this leads to a situation where those both within the crypto industry and those outsides are confused. One of the most recent of these is between Kik, a social media organization and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission which has to do with the 2017 fundraiser that was conducted for Kin, which is the native token to the Kik application.

This conflict has eventually led to a lawsuit and according to court documents filed August 6, 2019, Kik’s representative has stated that the SEC has no evidence and has twisted the facts in the ongoing case.

Kik and the SEC so far

The case stems from accusations from the SEC that Kik launched an illegal ICO in 2017 when their kin token was officially released but Kik itself has stated that the Kin is a utility token and not an investment token and as such, should not be classified as an illegal ICO. They have since sued the SEC who countersued in a case that hopes to give a concrete definition to security tokens and Investment tokens and sort out of a lot of underlying issues within the industry.

As of now, Kik’s lawyer has stated that the SEC took various quotes out of context and has twisted parts to support the narrative of Kik launching an illegal IOC with no strong evidence to support any of their claims.

“If the Commission had strong evidence that Kik offered or promised TDE purchasers an opportunity to profit from Kik’s efforts, as part of a common enterprise, the Commission would have simply outlined all the relevant facts and let those facts speak for themselves. Instead, the Commission’s Complaint reflects a consistent effort to twist the facts by removing quotes from their context and misrepresenting the documents and testimony that the Commission gathered in its investigation,” the document says. 

They have also stated that should this case go to trial, the SEC’s current tactics will not help them and will lead to their failure. It has also been stated that the SEC is not upholding its governmental obligation and is instead resorting to calculated misinterpretations.

As this lawsuit goes on, it will be interesting to see how the SEC responds and what the long-term effects of this conflict will be within the crypto industry.