Loci (LOCIcoin)
A 2017–2018 ICO for 'LOCIcoin' tied to the InnVenn IP-search platform. The SEC charged Loci and CEO John Wise with fraud for raising $7.6M on false claims about revenue, headcount, and user base; Wise also misused investor funds. Settled with a $7.6M penalty and an officer/director bar.
Also known as: Loci, LOCIcoin, InnVenn
Summary
Loci Inc., a Virginia software company behind the "InnVenn" intellectual-property search platform, raised $7.6 million from August 2017 to January 2018 by selling "LOCIcoin" tokens in an ICO. [1][2]
The fraud
Per the SEC, Loci and CEO John Wise made numerous materially false statements to investors — about the company's revenues, number of employees, InnVenn's user base, business partners, and a foundation that would ensure token liquidity — and Wise misused $38,163 of investor proceeds for personal expenses. [1][2]
Outcome
In June 2021 Loci and Wise settled antifraud and registration charges: a $7.6 million civil penalty against Loci, an officer-and-director bar against Wise, and undertakings to destroy remaining tokens and remove them from trading platforms. [1][2]
Bracketed numbers refer to the numbered sources listed below.
People & entities involved
Sources (2)
See also
$MELANIA tokenMarket manipulationA Solana memecoin announced by Melania Trump on Jan 19, 2025. Per FT analysis, ~24 wallets bought in minutes before the public announcement and netted ~$99.6M as retail piled in; the token then fell 95%+. Early buys were traced to wallets linked to $LIBRA figure Hayden Davis. No charges have been filed.
$TRUMP tokenMarket manipulationA Solana memecoin launched days before Donald Trump's second inauguration (Jan 2025). Trump-linked entities hold 80% of supply and earned $320M+ in fees while ~760,000 mostly-retail wallets lost money; a 'dinner with the president' promotion for top holders drew conflict-of-interest scrutiny. The 'scam' label is contested and no charges have been filed.
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