The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed criminal charges against Plutus Lending LLC, doing business as Abra, for offering and selling its retail cryptocurrency lending product, Abra Earn, without proper registration.
The SEC also accused Abra of operating as an unregistered investment company.
According to the SEC complaint, Abra launched its Abra Earn program in July 2020, allowing U.S. investors to lend their crypto assets to Abra in exchange for variable interest payments. At its peak, Abra Earn managed about $600 million in assets, about $500 million of which came from U.S. investors. The SEC alleges that Abra marketed the program as a way for investors to “automatically” earn interest on their crypto assets, while the company used those assets to generate income and fund interest payments.
The SEC alleges that Abra Earn is a security under U.S. law and should be registered with the SEC. The complaint also states that Abra has operated as an unregistered investment company for at least two years and holds more than 40% of its total assets (excluding cash) in investment securities, including crypto loans to institutional borrowers.
In June 2023, Abra began winding down its Abra Earn program and instructed U.S. clients to withdraw their assets. Yet the SEC’s accusations highlight the company’s failure to comply with basic registration laws designed to protect investors.
“As alleged, Abra sold approximately half a billion dollars of securities to U.S. investors without complying with registration laws designed to ensure that investors have sufficient and accurate information to make informed decisions before investing,” said Stacy Bogert, Deputy Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement.
*This is not investment advice.
