Yigit Taha OZTURK 
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a lawsuit against Nova Labs, the company behind the open-source Helium Network (HNT). This lawsuit comes just days before SEC chair and known crypto critic Gary Gensler steps down on January 20.
Details of the Lawsuit
The SEC alleges that Nova Labs sold unregistered investment products, including electronic devices called “Hotspots”, which mine the company’s cryptocurrency Helium (HNT), and a program called Discovery Mapping, which allows users to trade their private data for crypto assets.
The SEC also accused Nova Labs of misleading potential investors by claiming that major companies such as Lime, Nestlé, and Salesforce were using or relying on its wireless network, allegations the SEC states are untrue.
“Unregistered Securities” in the Crypto World
The term “unregistered securities” is well-known in the crypto world, with several similar lawsuits brought during Gary Gensler’s tenure at the SEC.
However, a significant win for the industry came in July 2023 when the court ruled that XRP’s programmatic sales on digital asset exchanges did not qualify as unregistered securities. Despite this, the SEC quickly filed an appeal to contest the decision.
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SEC’s Future Under New Leadership
With new leadership set to take over at the SEC on January 20, the agency may reportedly reconsider some existing crypto enforcement cases.
According to a January 15 Reuters report, the SEC may review and potentially drop certain cases in the days following the transition.
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