The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Thursday asked for court permission to distribute $1.4 million collected from the fraudulent PlexCoin ICO to its investors.
This came after the market regulator settled charges with the company by imposing a penalty of $4.56 million with an additional $350,000 to the company along with a fine of $1 million each to the founder Dominic Lacroix and his partner Sabrina Paradis-Royer.
Per the court document, the securities watchdog has seized $1.4 million in assets from the company that belonged to the US investors and is planning for a refund to the victims in a single distribution.
“Following the entry of the final judgment in this matter (D.E. 116), the entities that the Court directed to turnover assets formerly belonging to Lacroix have done so, resulting in the SEC collecting approximately $1.4 million as U.S. Assets,” the filing stated.
Ongoing proceedings might lead to more funds
Meanwhile, other legal proceedings related to the ICO are going on in Canada, and the court already appointed a receiver to collect proceeds from the token sale. The US SEC is also an interested party in the Canadian legal proceedings.
“The SEC is considering recommending to this Court that the U.S. Assets be sent to the Receiver to effect one, single distribution to harmed investors,” the regulator noted. “Prior to making such a recommendation, the SEC is ascertaining whether the Proposed Plan, and the accompanying claims process, is fair and reasonable and whether investors would be better served by one distribution as opposed to a second, separate distribution in the United States.”
The SEC also pointed out that the total losses to the victims of the ICO exceed $8 million, and if the SEC hands over the distribution process to the third party receiver, it will have less than $5 million to distribute.
“Reduction of administrative fees is important to maximize the distribution to harmed investors and is a primary reason the SEC is considering a single, coordinated distribution.” the filing added.
