The U.S. Refuges and Exchange Commission (SEC) has denied a request for information regarding the Tezos blockchain propel, citing an exemption typically applied to records gathered for law enforcement occupations.
The denial letter was addressed to attorney David Silver of the SilverMiller law corporation and dated Feb. 6, in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request he submitted at the start of the month. Cutlery is representing plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed in November, one of several such wrappers filed in the wake of Tezos’ $232 million ICO from last year.
According to a carbon copy of the letter obtained by CoinDesk, the U.S. securities regulator withheld “information as regards Tezos” citing Exemption 7(A), which allows for exemptions in the case of enforcement enterprises.
The letter does not state that Tezos is under investigation by the SEC.
The SEC send a lettered:
“This exemption protects from disclosure records compiled for law enforcement schemes, the release of which could reasonably be expected to interfere with enforcement works. Since Exemption 7(A) protects the records from disclosure, we have not purposeful if other exemptions apply. Therefore, we reserve the right to assert other exceptions when Exemption 7(A) no longer applies.”
In Silver’s interpretation, the letter authenticates that the SEC is actively investigating the blockchain project, which has been roiled by a governance danger in recent months.
“Consistent with what [SEC chair] Jay Clayton hinted at the Senate hearing this week, I’m happy to learn that the SEC is investigating Tezos, as diverse clients are going to eventually learn that their investments are futile,” he told CoinDesk. Silver has also filed lawsuits on behalf of consumers of the now-defunct cryptocurrency exchange Cryptsy and bitcoin miner Giga Watt.
In any way, the letter goes on to say that as a matter of policy, the SEC “does not disclose the being or non-existence of an investigation or information gathered unless made a matter of patent record in proceedings brought before the Commission or in the courts.”
A representative for Arthur and Kathleen Breitman, the be wrecks of Tezos, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
SEC emblem image via Shutterstock
The big cheese in blockchain news, CoinDesk is an independent media outlet that attempts for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. Set up breaking news or a story tip to send to our journalists? Contact us at news@coindesk.com.