TRON

The decentralized finance (DeFi) market is growing rapidly, and many blockchain projects strive to gain market share. However, only a few projects have successfully disrupted the DeFi industry, and Orbeon Protocol (ORBN) is one of them. In this article, we will discuss how the Orbeon Protocol (ORBN) revolutionary technology is disrupting the DeFi market and […]

Orbeon Protocol (ORBN) Revolutionary Technology Disrupts DeFi Market, Leaving ALGO, TRX In Its Wake

The SEC's fraud charges against Justin Sun's TRX token raise concerns for Huobi Global crypto exchange, as TRX comprises 18% of its reserves. Doubts about TRX's legitimacy may threaten Huobi's financial stability, prompting calls for full audits.
The post Should You Take Cryptos Off Huobi? Risks Escalate Amid Justin Sun Probe appeared first on BeInCrypto.

Should You Take Cryptos Off Huobi? Risks Escalate Amid Justin Sun Probe

In terms of active addresses, TRON [TRX] has outperformed the world’s largest cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin [BTC] and Ethereum [ETH]. While TRX had 1.8 million active addresses, BTC and ETH had over 902,000 and 518,000, respectively. Was this huge difference caused by TRON’s environmental friendliness? TRON stated in a tweet on March 26 that it consumes […]
The post ALTCOINDecoding How TRON [TRX] Surpassed BTC, ETH in Active Address Count appeared first on BitcoinWorld.

ALTCOINDecoding How TRON [TRX] Surpassed BTC, ETH in Active Address Count


                    
                    Chinese crypto billionaire Justin Sun sued by SEC, Do Kwon busted in Casino Royale location, game with 180 million players embraces Polygon.
                    Our weekly roundup of news from East Asia curates the industrys most important developments.Chinese crypto billionaire sued by SECOn Mar. 22, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, announced charges against Chinese blockchain personality and billionaire Sun Yuchen  better known as Justin Sun  and three of his wholly-owned companies Tron Foundation Limited, BitTorrent Foundation Ltd., and Rainberry Inc. (formerly known as BitTorrent).The complaint alleges that Sun and his companies “fraudulently” manipulated the secondary market for Tron (TRX) tokens through “extensive wash trading”, citing more than 600,000 such trades, and paying celebrities to promote TRX and BitTorrent (BTT) tokens with zero disclosure.The SECs civil complaint earlier today is just the latest example of actions it has taken against well known players in the blockchain and crypto space. We believe the complaint lacks merit, and in the meantime will continue building the most decentralized financial system.— H.E. Justin Sun  (@justinsuntron) March 23, 2023Multiple prominent American celebrities, such as Lindsay Lohan and Jake Paul, were named as defendants in their alleged roles in promoting TRX and BTT without proper disclosure. Some have since settled with the SEC. In addition, the SEC alleges that bounty programs and airdrops used to promote TRX and BTT were unregistered investments. Gary Gensler, chairman of the SEC, commented:“As alleged, Sun and his companies not only targeted U.S. investors in their unregistered offers and sales, generating millions in illegal proceeds at the expense of investors, but they also coordinated wash trading on an unregistered trading platform to create the misleading appearance of active trading in TRX.” Justin Sun is an active figure in the crypto industry who rose to prominence via the $70 million initial coin offering (ICO) of Tron in 2017. The ICO was reportedly conducted one day prior to the Chinese government’s announcement of a blanket ban on all ICOs within the country. Sun, who allegedly left Beijing shortly after and moved to San Francisco, used his newfound wealth from the successful Tron ICO to acquire the peer-to-peer downloading platform BitTorrent.Sunreportedlylaid low while in the U.S. and presented himself as an honest businessman fleeing from the spectres of communism. U.S. authorities have heard this sort of rhetoric before however and on Mar. 15, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that it had arrested Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui over his role in an alleged $1 billion stock and crypto fraud scheme. Just days before his arrest, Guoshilled to his viewersthe importance of his crypto exchange, blockchain technology, and tokens he had created in the fight against communism.The interest from U.S. authorities may have been behind Sun’s decision to move out of the U.S. in 2020 into the sunny Caribbean island of Grenada. He has since become the country’s ambassador to the World Trade Organization. Aside from foreign relations duties and the bestowment of the fancy title “His Excellency,” the role grants Sun a diplomatic passport that theoretically provides immunity against prosecution.Despite the controversies, Sun appears to be doing quite well in his new home. Last November, Sun reportedly acquired 100% of co-founders’ stakes in cryptocurrency exchange Huobi Global even though he publicly claims he is just a humble “advisor” in Huobi’s everyday affairs. In January, Asia Express reported that many Huobi employees’ benefits were allegedly axed via direct orders from Sun. In other areas, cryptocurrency exchange Binance has also significantly limited its utilization of Tron Tether (TRC-20 USDT) after regulatory backlash on its own stablecoin Binance USD.“Thx for your support & advice on how to take #TRON to the next level!,” wrote Sun on Twitter following a $4.5M dinner with American billionaire investor Warren Buffet. (Twitter)Do Kwon’s bad bet at Casino RoyaleIf Do Kwon has anything in common with James Bond in the 2006 hit filmCasino Royale, it is that both found (or is currently finding) their stay in the beautiful seaside nation of Montenegro to be deeply unpleasant. On Mar. 23, Filip Adzic, Minister of the Interior of Montenegro, announced that a South Korean national suspected of being the wanted fugitive Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon had been arrested at Podgorica Airport over falsified documents.Shortly after the announcement, South Korean authorities confirmed that the detained individual is, in fact, Do Kwon based on a positive match of name, birth date, nationality, and photographic evidence. Police say they are awaiting a fingerprint check from Montenegrin authorities to definitively identify the arrested individual. Do Kwon is currently wanted by Interpol, as well as South Korean, Singaporean, and U.S. authorities, for his role in the collapse of the $40 billion Terra Luna ecosystem in May 2022. Last October, South Korean prosecutors revoked Kwon’s passport, who was reportedly hiding in Serbia at the time.Serbia shares borders with Montenegro, a Balkan country that became independent in 2006 and, as a result, has signed few extradition agreements with other nations. However, an extradition agreement merely facilitates the process and is not a requirement for extradition to take place. Interestingly, South Korea does not have an embassy in Montenegro, and vice versa. Kwon had not been seen since late 2022 until news of his reported arrest. If anything, the blockchain executive has proven to be somewhat of a lackluster gambler. Aside from what appears to be a failed attempt to evade arrest and attempts to double down on the Terra Luna (LUNC) ecosystem, Kwon recently, and finally, lost a $11 million bet that the price of LUNC will be above $90 per token by mid-March 2023. LUNC’s price is $0.0001259 at the time of publication. Shortly after an Interpol Red Notice was issued, Do Kwon explained to Journalist Laura Shin in an interview that Terra “was never really about money or fame or success.” (Unchained)Maplestory moves into GameFiOn a happier note, South Korean gaming giant Nexon announced on Mar. 22 that it had selected Ethereum layer-two scaling solution Polygon (MATIC) to power the blockchain ecosystem for multiplayer 2-D fantasy role-playing game Maplestory.According to Nexon, a Polygon supernet, created by Polygon Labs, will be deployed within Maplestory to allow players to earn and collect in-game items as nonfungible tokens. Ryan Wyatt, president of Polygon Labs said:“Nexon selecting Polygon Supernets to power its worldwide hit MapleStory Universe sends a strong message to the entire gaming industry about the future of blockchain gaming.”Last January, Wyatt announced his resignation as head of gaming at Youtube and joined Polygon Studios as its new CEO.Created in 2003, MapleStory has immense popularity in the Asia-Pacific region and has surpassed 180 million registered players. In-game items are currently purchased using Nexon’s currency NX. The company reported $2.6 billion in revenue in 2022 and has developed over 50 games since inception. Maplestory embraces blockchain technology after 20 going strong for years. (Nexon)

Justin Sun vs. SEC, Do Kwon arrested, 180M player game taps Polygon: Asia Express

The agency believes that Justin Sun’s TRX and BTT are unregistered securities.
Continue reading at DailyCoin.

SEC Sues Tron Founder Justin Sun Over Fraud, TRX Wash Trading Scheme

Other charges of “wash trading” and “bounty program” have also been brought against the TRON Foundation and its founder by the SEC. 
TRX Is Unregistered Securities: SEC
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has recently filed charges of securities law violation against TRON Foundation founder Justin Sun. The lawsuit has also named his other companies - BitTorrent and Rainberry Inc., along with Tron foundation for allegedly conducting the unregistered sale of what the SEC calls “crypto assets securities.” 
Although none of the court rulings have declared any cryptocurrency to be a security, the SEC has been determined to prove that it is so. The fact that Sun and his companies offered and sold the Tronix (TRX) and BitTorrent (BTT) tokens to the public has rubbed the SEC the wrong way, as it claims that these tokens should have been first registered as securities. 
Charged With Wash Trading
The SEC has also alleged instances of extensive wash trading in these cases, where Sun and his companies tried to “fraudulently manipulate” the secondary market for TRX. This means that the defendants were simultaneously buying and selling the same crypto asset to dupe customers into believing that the platform experiences high volumes of trading activity. 
According to the regulatory body, employees at TRON Foundation conducted over 600,000 wash trades of TRX between the two accounts controlled by Sun himself. During this period, $4-6 million worth of TRX was washed daily under the direction of the CEO himself. 
SEC Alleges “Bounty Program”
To top it all off, the SEC also charged eight celebrities for promoting the TRX and BTT tokens through an illegal “bounty program.” This means they were incentivized with TRX and BTT distributions to promote the tokens on social media, recruit others to the token’s Telegram and Discord channels, and create BitTorrent accounts.
According to the SEC, these paid promotions did not disclose to the public the full nature of the incentivization received by the celebrities, and neither did they disclose the risks associated with such investments. 
The eight celebrities named in the charges are Lindsay Lohan, Jake Paul, DeAndre Cortez Way (aka Soulja Boy), Austin Mahone, Michele Mason (Kendra Lust), Miles Parks McCollum (Lil Yachty), Shaffer Smith (Ne-Yo), and Aliaune Thiam (Akon). 
SEC Chair Claims Misconduct
SEC Chair Gary Gensler addressed the matter in his latest statement, 

“As alleged in the complaint, Sun and others used an age-old playbook to mislead and harm investors by first offering securities without complying with registration and disclosure requirements and then manipulating the market for those very securities. At the same time, Sun paid celebrities with millions of social media followers to tout the unregistered offerings, while specifically directing that they not disclose their compensation. This is the very conduct that the federal securities laws were designed to protect against regardless of the labels Sun and others used.”

Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice. 

SEC Charges Justin Sun With Securities Law Violation

While the global crypto market appears to have plummeted due to federal reserve chairman Jerome Powell’s recent announcement on the spike in interest rates, Tron blockchain native token (TRX) and Houbi exchange native token (HT) seem to have slumped for other reasons. On March 22, the U.S. Securities Exchange and Commission (SEC) charged Tron founder, Justin Sun over the offering of unregistered sale of crypto asset securities and the manipulation of the market to pump the price of Tron as well as other related tokens.  More Details On The Allegations Claiming the violation of Section 5 of the Securities Act, the SEC stated that Justin Sun, the Tron Foundation, the BitTorrent Foundation, and BitTorrent (also known as Rainberry), would be sued on charges of fraud and initiation of a broad “wash trading” scheme that manipulated the trading volume of TRX. SEC chairman Gary Gensler noted: As alleged, Sun and his companies not only targeted U.S. investors in their unregistered offers and sales, generating millions in illegal proceeds at the expense of investors, but they also coordinated wash trading on an unregistered trading platform to create the misleading appearance of active trading in TRX. In addition, the SEC noted Sun sold a large amount of his TRX holdings on a secondary market, which resulted in $31 million generated from illegal proceeds, unregistered offers, and sales of the token (TRX).  According to the lawsuit, Sun’s scheme involved Tron Foundation employees participating in over 600,000 illicit trades via accounts controlled by Tron and Bittorent foundation. Gary Gensler added that Sun used the participation of public figures to initiate his plot. Sun further induced investors to purchase TRX and BTT by orchestrating a promotional campaign in which he and his celebrity promoters hid the fact that the celebrities were paid for their tweets. Alongside the charges against Sun, the SEC sued several celebrities involved in promoting TRX. Public figures include Boxer and Influencer, Jake Paul, Actress and Singer Lindsay Lohan, and Influencer Michele Mason, as well as rappers and singers Soulja Boy, Lil Yachty, Ne-Yo, and Akon. Tron (TRX) And Huobi (HT) Plummets Neary 10% Though the SEC allegation against Sun hasn’t been confirmed to be accurate, the news has resulted in a crash in Tron, HT, and several other Justin Sun-related tokens such as Bittorent (BTT), Just (JST), and Sun token (SUN).  Over the past 24 hours, Tron has seen a sharp decline, falling from a high of $0.067 before the SEC announcement to a low of $0.062 at the time of writing, down by 7.2%. Though the asset still ranks firmly as #16 among the largest crypto by market cap, nearly $500 million have been removed from its market cap in the last 24 hours. In contrast, Huobi (HT) has also fallen drastically in the last 24 hours, recording a 9.3% loss in value at the time of writing, with a trading price of $3.67 after trading at a high of $4.04 as of March 22. The token ranks #81 among the largest crypto by market cap with a 24-hour trading volume of $20 million.  Meanwhile, Justin Sun was quick to reply to the SEC allegations. The Tron founder said, The SEC’s civil complaint earlier today is just the latest example of actions it has taken against well-known players in the blockchain and crypto space. We believe the complaint lacks merit, and in the meantime will continue building the most decentralized financial system. Featured image from Unsplash, Chart from TradingView

Tron (TRX), Huobi Token (HT) Plummet Nearly 10% In A Day, Here’s Why

Following a lawsuit against the Tron founder, Justin Sun, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has its focus on celebrities connected to the crypto company. YouTube personality Jake Paul has joined the list for “illegally touting” cryptocurrencies. According to a report, Jake Paul is being sued by the SEC for promotion of cryptocurrencies, “TRX and/or […]
The post SEC Sues Influencer Jake Paul for Illegally Touting TRX and BTT appeared first on Coin Edition.

SEC Sues Influencer Jake Paul for Illegally Touting TRX and BTT

His Excellency Justin Sun has been accused by the SEC of manipulating the markets to pump the price of TRX and other tokens.

TRX, HT, BTT Crashed After SEC Accused Justin Sun of Securities Fraud

Tron’s TVL and accounts soar to new places, building on the previous week’s highs. TRX remains in limbo after failing to keep up with the major cryptocurrencies. The Tron network has successfully maintained consistent growth in key areas of its operations. The same goes for new weekly milestones and the latest report suggests that it […]

Tron reports another week of positive growth- Here are its latest milestones

The SEC claims TRX and BTT prices were driven by "wash trading," Sun and his employees manipulated prices for those assets with over 4.5 - 7.4 million tokens used in 600,000 fake trades between 2018 and 2019. [...]
Read More...
The post Tron founder Justin Sun, 8 celebrities hit with market manipulation and illegal securities charges appeared first on CoinGeek.

Tron founder Justin Sun, 8 celebrities hit with market manipulation and illegal securities charges

Justin Sun, the founder of the decentralized exchange platform Tron, has come lashing out at the SEC after the securities regulator sued him for selling TRX and BTT tokens as unregistered securities. This development comes on the same day as the US SEC issued Wells Notice to crypto exchange Coinbase. The SEC lawsuit on Justin 
The post Tron’s Justin Sun Slams the US SEC After Lawsuit appeared first on CoinGape.

Tron’s Justin Sun Slams the US SEC After Lawsuit

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday charged Tron founder Justin Sun and three of his firms, including digital asset network company Tron Foundation for market manipulation, fraud, and airdropping unlicensed securities to investors.

Newsflash: Tron’s TRX Plummets 11% After U.S. SEC Sues Justin Sun For Securities Violations

US SEC has declared TRX and BTT as securities and brought charges against Tron’s founder The commission has also claimed the Sun manipulated the price of TRX in the secondary market The United States Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC) has taken an action against prominent crypto-entrepreneur – Justin Sun – the founder of Tron (TRX). […]

US SEC claims TRX is security, charges Tron’s Justin Sun and eight others

The SEC also cited celebrities like Jake Paul, Lindsay Lohan, and Soulja Boy for pitching TRX and BTT.

Tron Token Sees Selloff After SEC Files Charges Against Founder Justin Sun


                    
                    Among the celebrities who settled with the SEC for their alleged role in promoting TRX and BTT were actress Lindsay Lohan, YouTuber Jake Paul, and singer Akon.
                    The United States Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, has called for a jury trial against Tron founder Justin Sun for the “orchestration of the unregistered offer and sale, manipulative trading, and unlawful touting of crypto asset securities.”In a March 22 filing in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the SEC named Sun, the Tron Foundation, the BitTorrent Foundation, and Rainberry over the offer and sale of Tron (TRX) and BitTorrent (BTT), alleging the tokens were securities. The financial regulator further alleged Sun engaged in “manipulative wash trading,” driving drive public interest in the two tokens by enlisting the help of celebrities. Among the celebrities promoting TRX and BTT were American rapper DeAndre Cortez Way, also known as Soulja Boy, Austin Mahone, actress Lindsay Lohan, YouTuber Jake Paul, and singer Aliaune Thiam, also known as Akon. Akon was also behind projects to create a ‘crypto city’ in Senegal and Uganda.“Although the celebrities were paid to promote TRX and BTT, their touts on social media did not disclose that they had been paid or the amounts of their payments,” said the SEC complaint. “Thus, the public was misled into believing that these celebrities had unbiased interest in TRX and BTT, and were not merely paid spokespersons.”Today we charged crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun and three of his wholly-owned companies for the unregistered offer and sale of crypto asset securities Tronix and BitTorrent. Read more:https://t.co/4tXgKNof6Q— U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (@SECGov) March 22, 2023

According to the SEC, Sun’s actions in the offer and sale of TRX and BTT violated aspects of the Securities Act. The regulator alleged the Tron founder was responsible for more than 600,000 wash trades of TRX from April 2018 to February 2019, which led to Sun selling more than $31 million worth of the token.“While we’re neutral about the technologies at issue, we’re anything but neutral when it comes to investor protection,” said SEC enforcement director Gurbir Grewal. “As alleged in the complaint, Sun and others used an age-old playbook to mislead and harm investors by first offering securities without complying with registration and disclosure requirements and then manipulating the market for those very securities.”Related: Celebs who got burned endorsing crypto and those that got away with itWith the exception of Mahone and Soulja Boy, the other celebrities named in the case have settled with the SEC, agreeing to pay more than $400,000 in disgorgement, interest, and penalties. The U.S. regulator said it planned to “permanently prohibit” Sun from acting as an officer or director of any firm offering crypto securities.In October 2022, the SEC announced it had reached a $1.2-million settlement with Kim Kardashian for touting EthereumMax (EMAX) tokens on her social media accounts. Following a similar settlement with former NBA player Paul Pierce in February, SEC chair Gary Gensler warned celebrities not to “lie to investors when you tout a security.”Magazine: SEC sues Do Kwon, Paxos ready to litigate, SBF’s VPN

SEC files lawsuit against Tron’s Justin Sun and celebrities over crypto securities offering

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has leveled multiple charges against the crypto mogul Justin Sun and three of his related companies, one of which is the well-known Tron Foundation Limited. These charges include the unregistered offer and sale of two unregistered cryptocurrencies as well as allegations of engaging in market manipulation and conducting airdrops 
The post Breaking: U.S. SEC Sues Tron Founder Justin Sun; Claims TRX & BTT Are Unregistered Securities appeared first on CoinGape.

Breaking: U.S. SEC Sues Tron Founder Justin Sun; Claims TRX & BTT Are Unregistered Securities

Other Sun-related tokens such as SUN, JUST and HT also took hits amid the SEC allegations.

Tron Network’s TRX Drops 13% Following SEC Charges Against Justin Sun

The securities regulator said Paul participated in a scheme to illegally promote TRX and/or BTT.

SEC Sues Jake Paul for 'Illegally Touting' Justin Sun-Linked Cryptos

Tron beats rival blockchain networks by garnering the highest daily active user count. TRX showed short-term low volatility, muted investor confidence and deflationary characteristics. The Tron [TRX] network has been seemingly outpacing its peers for some time now. Rankings from 18 March revealed that Tron was the leading blockchain by daily active users. Is your […]

Tron [TRX] leads in key metric, but will its price react accordingly

USDC supply on Tron dropped sharply while USDT’s dominance rose. TRX jumped nearly 15% at press time. The current stablecoin turmoil has spread far and wide and no crypto project has managed to stay aloof from its impact. Tron [TRX], the layer-1 blockchain, saw its USD Coin [USDC] supply drop from $1.03 billion at the […]