The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has launched an investigation into the BarnBridge DAO, resulting in members being advised to suspend all project-related activities. The news was delivered by Douglas Park, the DAO's attorney, in a July 6 post on the platform's Discord channel. Park stated that the SEC is investigating both the BarnBridge DAO and individuals associated with it, urging members to halt all work on BarnBridge-related products and refrain from receiving compensation for their investment efforts. Co-founder Tyler Ward con confirmed the news shortly afterwards.
The specific reasons behind the SEC's investigation into the BarnBridge DAO were not disclosed by Park or Ward. Limited information was shared due to the ongoing and non-public nature of the investigation. Notably, a proposal to retain the law firm of Park & Dibadj, led by Park, received overwhelming support from BarnBridge token holders. However, some DAO members questioned the announcement, requesting supporting evidence of the SEC investigation and suggesting that the founders might be using it as an excuse for an exit strategy that could potentially deceive investors.
In response to these claims, Ward dismissed them as baseless, emphasizing the lack of credibility in such an attempt. Some members responded humorously to the news, with suggestions to move operations to Europe in an attempt to evade the SEC's reach. about The SEC Chairman's tough stance on cryptocurrencies, suggesting that interacting with BarnBridge might result in being "shot" on live TV.
Following the announcement, the price of BarnBridge's native token, BOND, experienced a 1.9% drop to $3.12, according to CoinGecko. The token has seen a significant decline of 98.3% from its all-time high of $185.7 on October 27, 202 0, and currently holds a market cap of $29 million. This development comes after the SEC filed a lawsuit against major exchanges Binance and Coinbase last month, accusing them of offering unregistered securities. The investigation into BarnBridge, a smaller decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), suggests that Securities regulators are not solely targeting the largest players in the cryptocurrency industry.
