Cryptocurrencies
Bain-Backed Crypto Startup Closes as Securities Laws Bite
- Basis to refund investors just 8 months after raising funds
- Startup anticipates tokens being designated as securities
Photographer: Daro Sulakauri/Bloomberg
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The worst thing you can call a cryptocurrency project isn’t a "scam" or a "Ponzi scheme" -- although many have been called that. It’s a "security."
By casting digital assets in with stocks and bonds, the more stringent rules governing those traditional asset classes will be applied to cryptos. For proof of what that can mean for the nascent market, look no further than Basis, a high-profile project that is closing just eight months after raising $133 million from the likes of Andreessen Horowitz, Bain Capital Ventures and Stanley Druckenmiller.