U.S. SEC charges five individuals involved in BitConnect lending program

FILE PHOTO: The seal of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is seen at their headquarters in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 12, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday said it has charged five individuals for promoting a global unregistered digital asset securities offering that raised over $2 billion from retail investors.

BitConnect allegedly organized a global network of promoters through referral commissions and used the network to sell the securities without registering them as required by federal securities laws, the SEC said.