Blockchain-Based Hangover
TechnologyBit News Today2 min read
Adding the word blockchain to a company name lifted several small listed firms in late 2017 and early 2018, and the table charts that rally alongside the market and regulatory fallout that followed.
Within months most of the companies faced share collapses, Nasdaq delisting, SEC asset freezes or lawsuits, while regulators in the United States and South Korea opened inquiries into cosmetic rebranding.
| Date | Company or body | Event | Figures |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 Oct 2017 | Bioptix / Riot Blockchain | Begins presenting itself as a blockchain technology company | Stock about 250% higher by 21 Dec 2017 |
| Oct 2017 | On-line PLC (UK) | Announces plan to rename itself On-line Blockchain PLC | Shares up 394% that month |
| Dec 2017 | Longfin | Shares soar after a cryptocurrency-linked acquisition, Ziddu.com | Valuation above $3 billion; all-time high $142.82 |
| 19 Dec 2017 | SEC / The Crypto Co. | Trading suspended over accuracy of public information | Shares had risen as much as 17,000% in three months |
| 21 Dec 2017 | Long Island Iced Tea / Long Blockchain | Lemonade and iced tea maker renames itself Long Blockchain Corp | Up to 500% pre-market, settling near 275%; worth $23.8 million the day before |
| 22 Dec 2017 | Long Blockchain | First reversal as bitcoin slides overnight | Shares down 24% at the open; bitcoin down 23% |
| Jan 2018 | SEC chairman Jay Clayton | Warns about crypto rebrandings in a speech to the Securities Regulation Institute | Promises close scrutiny of such cases |
| 9 Jan 2018 | Eastman Kodak | Announces KODAKOne platform and KODAKCoin token with WENN Digital | Shares more than doubled that day; up 156.5% for January |
| Late Jan 2018 | Eastman Kodak | Delays the coin offering to verify investor accreditation | Most of the share gains given back |
| 16 Feb 2018 | Riot Blockchain | CNBC reports insider share sales timed with price rises; Robbins Geller files class action | Stock falls 33% after the report |
| Feb 2018 | Long Blockchain | Nasdaq notifies the company its securities will be delisted | Later served an SEC subpoena |
| Early 2018 | South Korea's Financial Supervisory Service | Opens a probe into rebrandings judged more cosmetic than real | 20 companies under review, names withheld |
| 6 Apr 2018 | SEC / Longfin | Court order freezes trading proceeds; Nasdaq halts the stock at 10:01 a.m. | More than $27 million frozen; shares over 90% below peak |
| 24 May 2018 | Longfin | Class A stock delisted from Nasdaq, moves to over-the-counter trading | Form 25 filed on 14 May 2018 |
| Jul 2019 | FBI / Long Blockchain | Search warrant request shows suspected insider trading and securities fraud | Linked to the separate case of Oliver Lindsay and Gannon Giguiere |
Sources: TechCrunch, Khaleej Times, Finance Magnates, The Motley Fool, CNBC, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, The Next Web.
