NGS Crypto loses bid to discharge frozen assets in ASIC court case
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The news: NGS Crypto, which recently rebranded as Hiddup, has lost its application for frozen assets linked to its court dispute with the corporate regulator to be discharged.
In a judgment today, Federal Court of Australia Judge Berna Collier rejected applications from NGS Companies and sole directors Brett Mendham, Ryan Brown and Mark Ten Caten to release their digital currency assets.
The numbers: A preliminary investigation of the company by ASIC indicated more than 450 Australians invested approximately USD41 million through NGS Companies.
The context: ASIC made allegations earlier this year that the company was targeting Australian investors to invest in blockchain mining packages with fixed-rate returns, encouraging them to transfer retirement savings from regulated super funds to self-managed super funds and then convert that money into cryptocurrency. Crucially, ASIC alleges, NGS was providing financial advice without a financial services licence.
An interlocutory application by ASIC to restrain the company from carrying on an unlicensed financial services business until a final hearing in the case had been scheduled for 29 July, but was vacated late on Thursday as multiple interlocutory applications have now been filed in the case. Collier has said the applications should be heard together at a later date to be fixed.
The case has been listed for a case management hearing at 9am on 5 August.
The source: Federal Court of Australia
