Kik Launches a $5m Crypto Crowdfunding Campaign Against the SEC

By Kapil Gauhar

Kik is the Canadian social media and messaging application company that has recently launched a $5 million cryptocurrency crowdfunding campaign to fight the Securities and Exchange Commission in court.

Ted Livingston, the Kik CEO and the founder of the Kin Foundation, and Patrick Gibbs, who is a partner at Cooley, together announced on the UnChained Podcast the launch of the cryptocurrency crowdfunding campaign with Laura Shin at Coinbase Custody to fight the US Securities and Exchange Commission in court, hoping for a lawsuit resulting in a new Howey test for crypto tokens.

The Defendcrypto.org states –

“The SEC has been shaping the future of crypto behind the scenes with settlements that set a dangerous precedent and stifle innovation.”

The website allows options for donations in 19 different digital currencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple.

Though $5 million may not be adequate to fight the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

According to the KIK founders –

“With the future of crypto on the line, $5 million might not be enough. That’s why we’re calling on others to contribute to the Defend Crypto fund.”

Kik entered the crypto world in 2017 with a $100 million ICO, now has been pointed to by the US Securities and Exchange Commission as possible security and the regulator might seek enforcement action against the company.

However, Kik decided to fight its ICO’s designation in the court for staving off regulation of its Kin crypto token, which created a legal conflict that could have major ramifications for the near future of ICOs at large.

Litigation might be exactly what the crypto space requires for setting a precedent for future circumstances. This belief reverberated by Chris Burniske, who tweeted in February, that the fight with the US SEC would ‘pivotal for crypto regulation in the US.’

Apparently, all this commotion with the SEC has some upsides as well.