“Relationship funding scams, together with these involving crypto asset investments, pose a threat of catastrophic hurt to retail traders, and the risk is rising quickly as these scams turn out to be extra fashionable with fraudsters,” mentioned Gurbir S. Grewal, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement in a press assertion. “In these two instances, we allege that fraudsters created faux crypto ecosystems that displayed false data to traders. Our allegations function a reminder to the general public to be on heightened alert about potential scams involving funding alternatives promoted by strangers on social media.”