2025-05-27 sec-litreleases litigation_release 67 KB 3,854 chars

SEC v. Unicoin, Inc.; Alexander Konanykhin; Maria Silvina Moschini; Alejandro Dominguez; and Richard Devlin, No. LR-26314, Southern District of New York (May 27, 2025) — Press Release

raw: Unicoin, Inc.; Alexander Konanykhin; Maria Silvina Moschini; Alejandro Dominguez; Richard Devlin

Unicoin, Inc.; Alexander Konanykhin; Maria Silvina Moschini; Alejandro Dominguez; Richard Devlin, No. 1:25-cv-04254 (S.D.N.Y. May 27, 2025)

Caption
Reina Trust Building, Inc. v. Voya Services Company
summary

The SEC charged Unicoin, Inc. and four top executives with orchestrating a $100 million crypto-asset offering fraud involving false claims of asset backing and SEC registration.

paragraph

Unicoin, Inc. and executives Alex Konanykhin, Silvina Moschini, Alex Dominguez, and Richard Devlin are charged with violating antifraud and registration provisions of the Securities Act and Exchange Act. The company allegedly misled 5,000 investors by claiming its certificates were backed by billions in assets when they raised only $110 million. While the SEC seeks disgorgement and officer bars for most defendants, General Counsel Richard Devlin has already consented to a $37,500 civil penalty.

narrative

The SEC charged Unicoin, Inc. and four top executives—Alex Konanykhin, Silvina Moschini, Alex Dominguez, and Richard Devlin—for an offering fraud that raised over $100 million from more than 5,000 investors. The defendants allegedly used extensive marketing to claim their crypto-asset certificates were 'SEC-registered' and backed by billions in real estate, despite raising only $110 million. The complaint further alleges that Konanykhin engaged in unregistered sales to bypass registration requirements. Charges include violations of antifraud and registration provisions under the Securities Act of 1933 and the Exchange Act of 1934. The SEC is seeking permanent injunctions, disgorgement, and officer-and-director bars against the primary defendants. General Counsel Richard Devlin has already consented to a final judgment including a $37,500 civil penalty. The litigation is being conducted in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Enriched metadata

Scheme
crypto-securities (100%)
Court
Southern District of New York
Case No.
1:25-cv-04254
Outcome
settled
Civil penalty
$37,500
Victim loss
$3,000,000,000
Victims
5,000
Entity
Unicoin, Inc.
Classified crypto-securities(confidence 100%). EDGAR detection: forms 1-A/S-1/8-K· recall 43% / precision 2%. detection rule →
Parties
Reina Trust Building, Inc.Voya Services Company
Keywords
unicoinrights certificateskonanykhincertificatesrightsmoschinidominguezsilvina moschinisecurities exchangesecuritiesalexander konanykhinkonanykhin mariamaria silvinamoschini alejandroalejandro dominguez

Exhibits & Attached Documents (1)

Extracted insights

Dollar amounts 4
  • $3.00B $3 billion ≥$1B
  • $110.00M $110 million $100M–$1B
  • $100.00M $100 Million $100M–$1B
  • $38K $37,500 $10K–$100K
Entities 1
  • agency Securities and Exchange Commission
Triples 15
  • Securities And Exchange Commission charged Unicoin, Inc. and four of its top executives for false and misleading statements in an offering of certificates that purportedly conveyed rights to receive crypto assets called Unicoin tokens and an offering of Unicoin, Inc.'s common stock
  • Unicoin marketed rights certificates to the public through extensive promotional efforts, including advertisements in major airports, on thousands of New York City taxis, and on television and social media
  • Unicoin and its executives convinced more than 5,000 investors to purchase rights certificates through false and misleading statements that portrayed them as investments in safe, stable, and profitable 'next generation' crypto assets
  • Unicoin claimed that Unicoin tokens underlying the rights certificates were 'asset-backed' by billions of dollars of real estate and equity interests in pre-IPO companies
  • Unicoin claimed that the company had sold more than $3 billion in rights certificates
  • Unicoin claimed that the rights certificates and Unicoin tokens were 'SEC-registered' or 'U.S. registered'
  • Unicoin and Konanykhin violated the federal securities laws by engaging in unregistered offers and sales of rights certificates
  • Konanykhin offered and sold over 37.9 million of his rights certificates to offer better pricing and target investors the company had prohibited from participating in the offering
  • Securities And Exchange Commission charges Unicoin, Konanykhin, Moschini, and Dominguez with violations of the antifraud provisions of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5(b) thereunder
  • Securities And Exchange Commission charges Konanykhin and Unicoin with violating the registration provisions of Section 5(a) and (c) of the Securities Act
  • Securities And Exchange Commission charges Konanykhin as a control person for certain of Unicoin's antifraud violations, pursuant to Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act
  • Securities And Exchange Commission seeks permanent injunctive relief, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains with prejudgment interest, and civil penalties against Unicoin, Konanykhin, Moschini, and Dominguez
  • Securities And Exchange Commission seeks officer-and-director bars against Konanykhin, Moschini, and Dominguez
  • Devlin violated Section 17(a)(2) and (3) of the Securities Act by negligently making misstatements in private placement memoranda Unicoin used to offer and sell rights certificates and Unicoin common stock
  • Devlin consented to the entry of a final judgment providing permanent injunctive relief and ordering him to pay a $37,500 civil penalty
PDF (from attached: complaint)
Text layers
Extracted body text (3,854c)
U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Litigation Release No. 26314 / May 27, 2025 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Unicoin, Inc.; Alexander Konanykhin; Maria Silvina Moschini; Alejandro Dominguez; Richard Devlin, No. 1:25-cv-04254 (S.D.N.Y. filed May 20, 2025) Unicoin, Top Executives Charged in Offering Fraud That Raised More than $100 Million from Thousands of Investors On May 20, 2025, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged New York City-based Unicoin, Inc. and four of its top executives-CEO and Board Chairman Alex Konanykhin; Silvina Moschini, former president, former board chairwoman, and current board member; former Chief Investment Officer Alex Dominguez; and General Counsel Richard Devlin-for false and misleading statements in an offering of certificates that purportedly conveyed rights to receive crypto assets called Unicoin tokens and an offering of Unicoin, Inc.'s common stock. The SEC alleges that Unicoin broadly marketed rights certificates to the public through extensive promotional efforts, including advertisements in major airports, on thousands of New York City taxis, and on television and social media. Among other things, Unicoin and its executives are alleged to have convinced more than 5,000 investors to purchase rights certificates through false and misleading statements that portrayed them as investments in safe, stable, and profitable "next generation" crypto assets, including claims that: Unicoin tokens underlying the rights certificates were "asset-backed" by billions of dollars of real estate and equity interests in pre-IPO companies, when Unicoin's assets were never worth more than a small fraction of that amount; the company had sold more than $3 billion in rights certificates, when it raised no more than $110 million; and the rights certificates and Unicoin tokens were "SEC-registered" or "U.S. registered," when they were not. According to the SEC's complaint, Unicoin and Konanykhin also violated the federal securities laws by engaging in unregistered offers and sales of rights certificates. Konanykhin offered and sold over 37.9 million of his rights certificates to offer better pricing and target investors the company had prohibited from participating in the offering to avoid jeopardizing its exemption to registration requirements, as alleged. The SEC's complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, charges Unicoin, Konanykhin, Moschini, and Dominguez with violations of the antifraud provisions of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5(b) thereunder. The complaint also charges Konanykhin and Unicoin with violating the registration provisions of Section 5(a) and (c) of the Securities Act, and Konanykhin as a control person for certain of Unicoin's antifraud violations, pursuant to Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act. The SEC seeks permanent injunctive relief, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains with prejudgment interest, and civil penalties against Unicoin, Konanykhin, Moschini, and Dominguez, as well as officer-and-director bars against Konanykhin, Moschini, and Dominguez. Additionally, the complaint charges Devlin with violating Section 17(a)(2) and (3) of the Securities Act by negligently making misstatements in private placement memoranda Unicoin used to offer and sell rights certificates and Unicoin common stock. Without admitting or denying the SEC's allegations, Devlin has consented to the entry of a final judgment providing permanent injunctive relief and ordering him to pay a $37,500 civil penalty. The SEC's investigation was conducted by Adam B. Gottlieb, Jason D. Schall, and Joss Berteaud and was supervised by W. Bradley Ney and D. Mark Cave. The litigation will be led by Russell Feldman and Mr. Gottlieb and supervised by Jack Kaufman.
OCR text (3,854c · html-text · 99% conf)
U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Litigation Release No. 26314 / May 27, 2025 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Unicoin, Inc.; Alexander Konanykhin; Maria Silvina Moschini; Alejandro Dominguez; Richard Devlin, No. 1:25-cv-04254 (S.D.N.Y. filed May 20, 2025) Unicoin, Top Executives Charged in Offering Fraud That Raised More than $100 Million from Thousands of Investors On May 20, 2025, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged New York City-based Unicoin, Inc. and four of its top executives-CEO and Board Chairman Alex Konanykhin; Silvina Moschini, former president, former board chairwoman, and current board member; former Chief Investment Officer Alex Dominguez; and General Counsel Richard Devlin-for false and misleading statements in an offering of certificates that purportedly conveyed rights to receive crypto assets called Unicoin tokens and an offering of Unicoin, Inc.'s common stock. The SEC alleges that Unicoin broadly marketed rights certificates to the public through extensive promotional efforts, including advertisements in major airports, on thousands of New York City taxis, and on television and social media. Among other things, Unicoin and its executives are alleged to have convinced more than 5,000 investors to purchase rights certificates through false and misleading statements that portrayed them as investments in safe, stable, and profitable "next generation" crypto assets, including claims that: Unicoin tokens underlying the rights certificates were "asset-backed" by billions of dollars of real estate and equity interests in pre-IPO companies, when Unicoin's assets were never worth more than a small fraction of that amount; the company had sold more than $3 billion in rights certificates, when it raised no more than $110 million; and the rights certificates and Unicoin tokens were "SEC-registered" or "U.S. registered," when they were not. According to the SEC's complaint, Unicoin and Konanykhin also violated the federal securities laws by engaging in unregistered offers and sales of rights certificates. Konanykhin offered and sold over 37.9 million of his rights certificates to offer better pricing and target investors the company had prohibited from participating in the offering to avoid jeopardizing its exemption to registration requirements, as alleged. The SEC's complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, charges Unicoin, Konanykhin, Moschini, and Dominguez with violations of the antifraud provisions of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5(b) thereunder. The complaint also charges Konanykhin and Unicoin with violating the registration provisions of Section 5(a) and (c) of the Securities Act, and Konanykhin as a control person for certain of Unicoin's antifraud violations, pursuant to Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act. The SEC seeks permanent injunctive relief, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains with prejudgment interest, and civil penalties against Unicoin, Konanykhin, Moschini, and Dominguez, as well as officer-and-director bars against Konanykhin, Moschini, and Dominguez. Additionally, the complaint charges Devlin with violating Section 17(a)(2) and (3) of the Securities Act by negligently making misstatements in private placement memoranda Unicoin used to offer and sell rights certificates and Unicoin common stock. Without admitting or denying the SEC's allegations, Devlin has consented to the entry of a final judgment providing permanent injunctive relief and ordering him to pay a $37,500 civil penalty. The SEC's investigation was conducted by Adam B. Gottlieb, Jason D. Schall, and Joss Berteaud and was supervised by W. Bradley Ney and D. Mark Cave. The litigation will be led by Russell Feldman and Mr. Gottlieb and supervised by Jack Kaufman.