The Department of Justice has indicted Align Assets and several of its officers for allegedly soliciting investments from the public without the required licenses following a complaint filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The SEC said in a statement the DOJ found prima facie evidence with reasonable certainty of conviction to indict Align Assets for violations of the Securities Regulation Code in relation to the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.
It said its investigation revealed that Align Assets presented itself as a United Kingdom-based decentralized trading platform with no identifiable owner or group.
The company claimed a “bot” handled its cryptocurrency trading. However, the SEC Enforcement and Investor Protection Department found that most online traffic related to the platform originated from the Philippines.
Align Assets allegedly enticed the public to invest by promising returns of 3 percent every working day or about 150 percent in 50 working days. The scheme also offered additional earnings of 5 percent for direct referrals and 0.05 percent for indirect referrals.
The DOJ resolution said the securities offered by the respondents are unregistered and unauthorized in both the Philippines and their purported base in the United Kingdom. It noted that the respondents presented no evidence regarding the legitimate existence of Align Assets and offered only bare denials against the charges.
The SEC said its records showed the group used Facebook posts to entice the public through false pretenses and misrepresentations of a lucrative investment opportunity.
The SEC said it issued an advisory as early as March 2021 warning the public against Align Assets after it failed to register as a corporation or partnership and lacked authority to solicit investments.
