U.S. State Regulators Hit BitConnect With Second Cease-And-Desist

BitConnect's planned initial coin offering (ICO) has attracted another cease-and-desist letter from U.S. state regulators, marking the second time this month.

In a release dated Jan. 9, the regulators from the North Carolina Securities Division outlined the temporary cease-and-desist, stating that BitConnect hadn't registered to deal or sell securities in the Tar Heel State.

According to the release, the division determined that BitConnect had planned to sell unregistered securities in their initial coin offering (ICO), which was scheduled to launch on Jan. 10.

The release continued:

“The Temporary Order to Cease and Desist found that BitConnect was not registered as a dealer or salesman of securities in North Carolina and offered investments called the BitConnect Lending Program and the BitConnect Staking Program. The Temporary Order to Cease and Desist also found that BitConnect had omitted to disclose material facts when offering these investments in North Carolina.”

BitConnect has 30 days to respond, according to the temporary cease-and-desist notice. If the company fails to do so, the temporary order will become permanent, according to the release.

Last week, the Texas State Securities Board issued a similar statement regarding BitConnect, which some critics have accused of constituting a Ponzi scheme.

Like their counterparts in North Carolina, the Securities Board issued a temporary cease and desist order, stating that cryptocurrencies are "risky investments."

North Carolina image via Shutterstock