Wednesday, February 21, 2024

Mississippi Joins $1.5 Million Multistate Securities Settlement Against Crypto Platform, TradeStation

JACKSON, Miss. – Secretary of State Michael Watson and the Securities Division of the Mississippi Secretary of State's Office have entered into a settlement with TradeStation Crypto, Inc. (TradeStation) to resolve Mississippi’s investigation into TradeStation’s crypto interest-earning program.


The $1.5 million multistate settlement, on behalf of 51 United States jurisdictions, is the result of a North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) task force of eight state securities regulators from Alabama, California, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Washington, and Wisconsin. The task force determined that during the offering period, TradeStation engaged in the unregistered offer and sale of securities via its crypto interest-earning program.


"I am proud of the diligent work of Eric Slee and our securities team to ensure Mississippians have confidence investing their hard-earned money. It is imperative we continue to protect the investments of our citizens, especially with emerging and ever-changing investment platforms," said Secretary Michael Watson.


TradeStation, a Florida corporation formed in 2018, provides crypto-asset-related financial services to retail and institutional customers in the United States, including investing and trading services. From January 14, 2022, to June 2022, TradeStation offered a crypto interest-earning program to Mississippi investors. Under this program, investors passively earned interest on crypto assets by loaning them to TradeStation. TradeStation maintained total discretion over the revenue-generating activities utilized to earn returns for investors. The company offered and promoted their crypto interest-earning program in Mississippi and the United States at large via its website and various platforms.


For additional information or questions, contact the Securities Division at (601) 359-1334. Investors living in states other than Mississippi, or in provinces, can contact their local regulator agency.