Stoner Cats NFTs face trading ban following SEC charges
OpenSea, Rarible, and Blur, some of the major NFT marketplaces, have imposed a trading ban on the Stoner Cats NFT project. This decisive action comes after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged the project’s creators with selling unregistered securities.
Table of Contents
Stoner Cats face trading ban
Since their release in 2021, Stoner Cats NFTs, associated with a star-studded animated series, have been available for trade across numerous platforms. However, as of now, OpenSea and Blur have deactivated any live listings of the Stoner Cats NFTs. Similarly, Rarible has removed the project from its website entirely.
While the project is still visible on OpenSea, transactions involving the Stoner Cats NFTs are no longer possible on the platform. This is a deliberate decision, according to OpenSea’s Community Standards page. Beyond its marketplace services, OpenSea functions as a blockchain explorer for NFTs, so even if trading is halted, it generally retains project pages.
Trading on LooksRare and X2Y2 remains available
Interestingly, while these NFTs may be gone from Rarible and are inactive on OpenSea, they persist on the blockchain, housed securely in their owners’ wallets. Other marketplaces, like LooksRare and X2Y2, continue to list them actively.
Floor price and trading volumes surge
Following the SEC charges against Stoner Cats, the project witnessed an impressive surge in its floor price. The floor price had remained stagnant at 0.2 ETH for several months, but after the SEC’s legal action, it surged to 0.8 ETH.
The trading ban seems to have a similar effect, as trading volumes have surged 1,910% in the last 24 hours, according to data from nftpricefloor. The collection’s floor price also registered a significant daily pump, rising from 0.37 ETH to 0.59 ETH.
Ongoing legal saga
Following the SEC’s allegations, the creators decided to settle. They consented to pay a civil fine of $1 million. This amount is earmarked for a Fair Fund, meant to reimburse affected investors. Details on eligibility for this fund are still under wraps. Moreover, the SEC revealed that Stoner Cats’ creators have committed to destroying any NFTs they still own.
However, certain members of the SEC are speaking out against the decision and pushing for clearer regulation. In related news, the SEC is also prosecuting Binance, having recently requested U.S. courts to authorize an inspection into the crypto exchange.
