A Quebec City couple allegedly behind a cryptocurrency start-up accused of fraudulently selling millions dollars worth of tokens agreed to relinquish the entire amounts raised from PlexCoin investors.
A troubled young Quebec City man who incited hate against Arabs by writing unapologetically “cruel and racist” rantings on social media hours after six people were shot dead and five wounded at a mosque in Quebec City in 2017 was sentenced to 60 days in prison.
The Quebec government took a gamble, and lost.
Under the guise of concern for the health and safety of Quebecers, the provincial government introduced controversial legislation that compelled Internet service providers to block unlicensed gambling websites.
It was a ruse, a move to protect their turf and increase revenues.
The noose is tightening around Dominic Lacroix, a Quebec City businessman believed by Quebec’s financial watchdog and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to be behind PlexCorps, a controversial cryptocurrency start-up accused of fraudulently selling millions of dollars’ worth of digital assets.
Dominic Lacroix, a Quebec City businessman believed by Quebec’s financial watchdog and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to be behind PlexCorps, a controversial cryptocurrency start-up accused of fraudulently selling up to $15 million of tokens, was sentenced to two months of prison and fined $100,000 for contempt of court.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has obtained an emergency asset freeze against PlexCoin, a controversial “fast-moving” and “purported” initial coin offering (ICO) that has raised up to $15 million from thousands of investors since August 2017.
The SEC also filed charges against Dominic Lacroix, a “recidivist” Quebec securities law violator, his partner Sabrina Paradis-Royer and his company PlexCorps, according to a new filing dated December 1, 2017 in Brooklyn, New York.
Why it matters: Regulators are keeping a watchful eye on ICOs, hoping to make life difficult for predatory offerings that promise exhorbitant returns.
Dominic Lacroix, a Quebec City businessman believed by the Quebec financial watchdog to be behind the virtual currency PlexCoin, was found guilty of contempt of court.
What happened: Lacroix and his company DL Innov inc. failed to respect broad ex parte orders issued by the Quebec Financial Markets Administrative Tribunal on July 20th that forbade them from “engaging in activities for the purpose of directly or indirectly trading in any form of investment” covered by section 1 of the Quebec Securities Act, either in Quebec or from Quebec to outside of the province.
“Public interest is at stake,” said Quebec Superior Court Justice Marc Lesage in a ruling issued mid-October. “Investor protection is primordial.”
Quebec’s financial watchdog is putting the squeeze on Dominic Lacroix.
He is a Quebec City resident who is thought to be behind an initial coin offering, PlexCoin, that is set to launch on Friday, October 13th.
The Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) is working hard to prevent that from happening, and is ramping up the pressure.
Next Tuesday, on October 3rd, before Quebec Superior Court in Quebec City, the AMF will argue that Lacroix should be found guilty of contempt of court for failing to comply with orders issued by the Quebec Financial Markets Administrative Tribunal.
Private sector organizations following federal privacy law will have to provide breach notifications to customers and the privacy commissioner where it is reasonable to believe that the breach creates a “real risk of significant harm,” under long-awaited proposed regulations to Canada’s Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA).
The draft regulations, if and when they come in force, are expected to provide Canadians with better protection while providing organizations with yet another compelling incentive to adopt better security practices to thwart a phenomenon that is occurring with alarming frequency, according to privacy experts.
Early this month, a security breach at credit-monitoring company Equifax Inc., one of three major credit bureaus in the United States, could affect up to 143 million Americans and an undisclosed number of Canadians. More recently still, the personal information of some one million users from the news and entertainment website Canoe.ca were exposed after some of its databases were hacked.
The Quebec financial watchdog raided last week the offices of Dominic Lacroix, a Quebec City man who has been prohibited by a tribunal to promote and solicit investors for a new virtual currency called PlexCoin.
The raid turned up a list of people from around the world, including Quebec, the U.S., and Africa, who expressed an interest in investing in PlexCoin, said Sylvain Théberge, a spokesperson with the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), the regulatory and oversight body for Quebec’s financial sector.
Quebec’s financial watchdog is considering handing over the case involving Dominic Lacroix and his companies, who has been prohibited by a tribunal to promote and solicit investors for a new virtual currency called PlexCoin, to police authorities.
The Autorité des marchés financiers, the regulatory and oversight body for Québec’s financial sector, is also considering launching penal proceedings against Lacroix and his companies, said Sylvain Théberge, AMF’s spokesperson. Such proceedings would take place before the Court of Quebec, a provincial court.
“We are talking about thousands of persons who have shown an interest in this system,” said Théberge, adding that a decision as to whether to call in police or refer the matter for penal proceedings will take place this week. “We are extremely concerned. It seems to us, until the contrary is proven, that investors may become involved in a high-risk investment.”