American Bitcoin Academy founder settles SEC fraud claims for $1,2 million

Brian Sewell encouraged students of his online courses to invest in a cryptocurrency fund that was never launched

05.02.2024 - 14:18

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What’s new? The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has reached a settlement agreement with Brian Sewell, founder of Rockwell Capital Management and American Bitcoin Academy online courses, who was previously accused of a $1,2 million fraud. Rockwell agreed to pay $1,6 million in restitution and Sewell agreed to pay a $223 229 fine, while neither admitting nor denying the allegations in the lawsuit. The settlement agreement must also be approved by the court.

SEC statement

What else is known? According to the SEC’s complaint, Sewell, from at least early 2018 through mid-2019, encouraged students in his online courses to invest in the yet-to-be-launched Rockwell Fund, a hedge fund that would focus on AI technology and cryptocurrency trading strategies.

Thus he raised $1,2 million from 15 students, while the launch of the fund never took place. Sewell converted the funds he received into bitcoins and stored them in a digital wallet, which was later hacked by unknown hackers.

“Whether it’s AI, crypto, DeFi or some other buzzword, the SEC will continue to hold accountable those who claim to use attention-grabbing technologies to attract and defraud investors,” said Gurbir Grewal, Director of the Division of Enforcement.

Earlier, the SEC filed a lawsuit against the crypto Ponzi scheme HyperFund for $1,7 billion in fraud, and the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) accused crypto platform Debiex of $2,3 million in fraud.

Last year, the SEC filed 46 lawsuits against crypto firms, while the CFTC filed 47.

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