The SEC claims that after being informed of the imminent rebrand into Long Blockchain, Giguiere immediately bought 35,000 LTEA shares on December 20, 2017 for US$2.44 each. Watson has previously told the Herald he believes the complaint is without merit as he had not personally profited from any of the transactions in question. Giguiere filed late last year to dismiss the SEC case, with a key part of his defence being that Watson received no personal or financial benefit from the transaction. “The court agrees that the [SEC] sufficiently alleges that Lindsay and Watson are friends and that Watson intended to make a gift to Lindsay out of friendship,” Carter said. Watson faces legal war on multiple fronts, with the insider-trading case presenting arguably the least-serious threat.

Source: New Zealand Herald March 20, 2023 04:59 UTC