CyberKongz gets hit with Wells Notice from SEC, fights back over NFT industry’s future 

CyberKongz, a gaming-based NFT project, has been issued a Wells Notice by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, raising concerns over its ERC-20 token and blockchain game integration, indicating a potential legal battle might be in the cards.

The team said they were “extremely disappointed at the approach the SEC has taken” on X post on Dec. 16, referring to the Well’s notice, a formal SEC warning of potential enforcement. They also pledged to fight back, arguing the result could have major consequences for the web3 gaming and NFT sectors.

The SEC has expressed some concern with CyberKongz’s pairing of its ERC-20 token with its blockchain-based game. The SEC’s Division of Enforcement argues in CyberKongz’s case that this setup constitutes a security that has to be registered, much like the stance it took against Ripple. This position, the project argued, highlights a failure to understand blockchain technologies and would create a dangerous precedent across the entire web3 gaming industry.

The SEC’s concerns relate to its view that the 2021 Genesis Kongz contract migration was a primary sale. CyberKongz said this was a baffling interpretation of smart contracts and accused the regulator of failing to make a distinction between technical processes versus actual token sales. 

CyberKongz stated that its team has been under the microscope for the past 2 years and has suffered in silence during this period. With a small team and no prior capital raises or massive treasuries, the project will now try to challenge the SEC’s position to push for clearer rules in the digital asset space.

The statement also sought to blame the current administration, claiming its “anti-crypto agenda” had harmed the entire blockchain industry, and expressed hope for a new direction under the next administration. CyberKongz also voiced solidarity with industry leaders, including Brian Armstrong of Coinbase, Devin Finzer of OpenSea, and Hayden Adams of Uniswap Labs, who are also facing regulatory pressure from the SEC. 

“It has become increasingly apparent that the current administration is trying to force their anti-crypto agenda at the last minute. We hope that the new administration puts an end to this unjustness.”

CyberKongz on X.

By treating tokens as securities, the SEC seeks to subject them to stricter regulatory scrutiny and compliance with existing financial regulations, making it mandatory for projects to register and provide disclosures akin to those of traditional financial instruments. Critics say this approach suppresses innovation and overlooks the decentralized nature of blockchain technologies.