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
- Bitcoin Latinum (LTNM)TokensA ~$16M token offering (SAFTs for 'Bitcoin Latinum' / LTNM) that the SEC charged in 2026 as fraud: founder Donald Basile falsely called LTNM 'the world's first insured digital asset' backed by an 'existing trust,' neither of which existed, and diverted investor funds for personal use (including a $160,000 horse).
- Blockchain Terminal (BCT)TokensA 2017–2018 ICO (BCT tokens, ~$30M) for a 'Blockchain Terminal' — a Bloomberg-style crypto trading terminal. The SEC and DOJ said convicted ex-hedge-funder Boaz Manor secretly ran it under a fake identity ('Shaun MacDonald'), using associate Edith Pardo as a front, and lied about the product's adoption.
- Crowd Machine (CMCT)
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