For all the complaints levied against the crypto-strict U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the agency successfully obtained orders for $8.2 billion in financial remedies for 2024.

This is despite a 26% decrease in total enforcement actions.

The successful prosecution of Terraform Labs helped the agency achieve this milestone. Once a jury verdict found Terraform Labs and founder Do Kwon liable for fraud, defendants agreed to a final judgment ordering them to pay more than $4.5 billion in penalties — the highest amount ever obtained by the SEC following a trial.

It accounted for more than half of the total monetary judgments, according to the details from the press release.

SEC’s 583 enforcement actions

The SEC’s enforcement efforts in 2024 showed significant shifts across multiple categories, with 583 total enforcement actions. This includes 431 stand-alone actions representing a 14% decrease, 93 follow-on administrative proceedings showing a 43% decrease, and 59 delinquent filing actions marking a 51% decline.

Despite the reduced number of cases, the financial impact reached these levels, combining $6.1 billion in disgorgement and prejudgment interest with $2.1 billion in civil penalties.

In the cryptocurrency sector, the SEC pursued several major cases, including charges against Silvergate Capital for misleading BSA/AML compliance disclosures and action against Barnbridge DAO for unregistered securities offerings.

The agency also tackled the HyperFund pyramid scheme involving $1.7 billion and the NovaTech fraud case affecting 200,000 investors. Notable first-time enforcement actions targeted relationship investment scams involving NanoBit and CoinW6 platforms.

The SEC’s Division of Enforcement won all five federal district court cases, including its crypto-related trial against Terraform Labs. This success extended to investor protection measures, with 124 individuals barred from serving as officers and directors of public companies.

SEC Chair Gary Gensler emphasized the Division’s role as a “steadfast cop on the beat,” while Acting Director Sanjay Wadhwa noted increased market participant cooperation and self-reporting. 

The report somewhat justifies Gensler’s role as the top crypto enforcer. The outgoing SEC chair, set to resign on Jan. 20, faced harsh criticism from crypto enthusiasts and retail traders throughout his tenure for his regulatory approach.

And yet, the SEC distributed $345 million to harmed investors and processed a record 45,130 tips, complaints, and referrals, including over 24,000 whistleblower tips, resulting in $255 million in whistleblower awards.

The agency’s success in returning funds to investors has been substantial, with more than $2.7 billion distributed since fiscal year 2021.

Some crypto enthusiasts speculate that the service, once live, might include transactions with some digital assets such as DOGE, given Musk’s long-standing affection for the token. Musk’s electric car company, Tesla, already accepts DOGE payments for some merchandise purchases in its online store.

The layer-1 blockchain Cardano (ADA) is primed to continue its long-awaited price surge, according to a popular crypto analyst.

The digital asset trader Ali Martinez tells his 87,300 followers on the social media platform X that whales and “institutional players” have been buying into the Ethereum (ETH) competitor in anticipation of further price increases.

“The volume of large Cardano ADA transactions on the network has surpassed $22 billion per day. Those large transactions appear to be related to high accumulation levels. Indeed, whales holding from $1 million to over $10 million in ADA have increased their positions by more than 100% in the past month. 

The high buying pressure is starting to move prices, and from a technical perspective, Cardano seems to be mirroring its previous bullish cycle. If this pattern holds true, ADA could target $6!”

Martinez also notes that one “key area” of support that ADA needs to hold to maintain its bullish thesis is $0.80. At that price point, 48,000 addresses bought nearly 1.20 billion ADA.

ADA is trading at $1.06 at time of writing. The ninth-ranked crypto asset by market cap is up more than 24% in the past 24 hours, more than 48% in the past seven days and nearly 200% in the past month.

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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed at The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any losses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

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