Crypto Currency

The same German online news outlet that broke the Savedroid supposed exit scam, turned gotcha publicity stunt, is reporting prosecutors just might have a legal case against the initial coin offering (ICO) outfit.

Also read: Bitcoin in Brief Thursday: ICO Scares Investors with Ghost Prank

German Prosecutors Consider Legal Action Against Savedroid

Wirtschafts Woche, the same German source that announced a $50 million exit scam by ICO Savedroid, is reporting prosecutors in Frankfurt are examining the “extreme advertising campaign” of the startup. After an elaborate hoax was played on its investors and the public, the company has been doing heavy damage control. According to the online news group, prosecutors have begun a “preliminary investigation.”

A day or so ago, nearly every media outlet in the space ran headlines about tens of millions of dollars ghosted by a brazen ICO founder. He appeared on a beach, Egyptian beer in a frame beside him. Safedroid’s website featured a well-known meme, circumstantially suggesting yet another ICO has orchestrated an exit scam.

But this one seemed off. Veteran journalists, and these very pages, wondered aloud if this wasn’t just a publicity stunt. By later that evening, the site was back up, insisting they were joking and trying to educate the ecosystem about the potential of fraud. “That could have legal consequences for Savedroid now,” the German website stated.

Founder Yassin Hankir released a video statement, asking the public “let me apologize for the drastic campaign.” Indeed, even the company’s Telegram account ghosted during those hours. In situations like these, especially with new investors to whom ICOs are geared, dangerous emotions are often involved, including drastic measures of self harm. Losing considerable sums is no laughing matter, especially if it’s your money.

For Education Purposes

Mr. Hankir continued, “We’ve noticed in the past few months that there are a lot of scams in the industry and we believe this is just the tip of the iceberg. That’s why we wanted to use this very drastic method to show that even we, as a very heavily regulated German company, could easily have run away with all investments.”

Noted.

Wirtschafts Woche also revealed that indeed police have visited Mr. Hankir to discuss the issue.

Would you invest in Savedroid now? Let us know in the comments section below.

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The post German Cops Look Hard at Antics of ICO Savedroid After Ghost Prank appeared first on Bitcoin News.

The Supreme Court of Russia has directed a court in the city of St. Petersburg to consider an appeal against a blocked cryptocurrency information website.

According to Russian legal information site RAPSI, the Vyborgsky District Court of St. Petersburg blocked Bitcoininfo.ru in 2016, claiming that cryptocurrencies are “a means of virtual payment and accumulation,” and therefore, the provision of related information is illegal because it undermines the country’s sole legal currency – the ruble.

The court did not invite the defendants to the initial trial, and they were unaware of the court’s decision to block the site until access was cut off, Russian crypto publication Anycoin said. The original appeal period closed by that point.

Bitcoininfo reportedly attempted to appeal the ruling despite missing the window, but the court declined to review it. Anycoin reported last month that the Supreme Court would review the case after subsequent reviews, which it has now passed onto the St. Petersburg City Court as of Friday.

According to RIA Novosti, the same St. Petersburg court reviewed a similar appeal in February and overturned a decision to block 40 bitcoin-related sites.

The Russian government has largely expressed opposition to informational sites about cryptocurrencies. Last year its central bank said it would back efforts to block access to external websites selling cryptocurrencies in the country, citing risks to investors as its justification, as previously reported.

Statue of Themis at the Supreme Court of Russia image via Shutterstock

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