Des Moines, IA- Iowa’s insurance commissioner says a cryptocurrency company will pay a fine of over $900,000 to the state of Iowa for selling unregistered securities and misrepresenting the product’s risk level.
Radio Iowa reports that BlockFi Lending has offered interest-bearing accounts to customers with cryptocurrency, promising to make variable interest payments each month.
Two and a half years ago, BlockFi and its affiliates held about 267,000 dollars’ worth of crypto from Iowans. By the end of 2021, that had ballooned to 14.6 million. The company was accused of selling securities in Iowa without being registered as a broker-dealer or agent.
The Iowa Insurance Commissioner’s announcement is part of a joint investigation by a federal agency and state regulators. BlockFi has agreed to pay 50 million dollars to the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Iowa’s insurance commission says the company is paying another 50 million dollars to 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
