The Chairman of America\'s SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), Jay Clayton, said on January 22nd that the Commission would be taking a close look into the slew of public companies that recently announced a policy pivot into cryptocurrencies or Blockchain.

As Bitcoin and Blockchain mania picked up towards the end of 2017, it was apparent that several major publicly-listed companies were taking advantage of the trend. The former biotech firm, BiOptix (now Riot Blockchain Inc), former juice producers, SkyPeople Fruit Juice Inc (now Future FinTech Group Inc) and former beverage firm Long Island Iced Tea Corp (now Long Blockchain Corp) are among the many who jumped on the Blockchain bandwagon. Stock prices for most companies making the change rose immediately.

However, this trend has sparked off immediate warnings, both from the SEC and other financial regulators such as FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority). These bodies see the pivoting strategy as one which offers potential for abuse by fraudulent operators.

Clayton confirmed in a January 22nd statement made in Washington DC that the SEC is looking closely into the issue, with specific focus on investor disclosures. In particular, the SEC will check whether these disclosures comply with existing securities laws, especially as regards Initial Coin Offerings.