PARIS 鈥 Crypto company Nexo has relaunched in the United States, it said on Monday, three years after leaving the country and paying a $45-鈥million fine following clashes with regulators.
Co-founded by former Bulgarian lawmaker Antoni Trenchev, Nexo paid 鈥the fine to settle charges brought by US regulators over a crypto lending product, which the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said should have been registered as a security.
Nexo did not admit or deny the SEC鈥檚 findings under the settlement.
In a statement on Monday, Nexo said it was returning to the US in partnership with a listed crypto company, Bakkt, and will sell crypto-backed loans as well as yield-generating products to US customers.
鈥淣exo discontinued the product 鈥covered by the 2023 SEC order for US investors as required,鈥 a spokesperson for the company said.
鈥淭he current US offering is structured differently and is delivered through appropriately licensed US partners, including, where applicable, an SEC-registered investment adviser for advisory services,鈥 they added.
A spokesperson for the SEC declined to comment.
NEXO鈥橲 CONTACTS WITH THE TRUMP FAMILY
Mr. Trenchev had lunch with US President Donald J. Trump in July at his Scottish golf resort, where Nexo was the lead sponsor of a golf championship. There, they discussed politics and their 鈥渏oint 鈥vision for crypto in the US,鈥 according to a post on X by Mr. Trenchev.
Once a crypto skeptic, Mr. Trump reversed his stance before returning to the White House. Soon after he took office last year, the SEC ended a years-long crackdown on crypto companies.
Nexo hosted Donald Trump, Jr., the president鈥檚 eldest son, at a 鈥淭rump Business Vision 2025鈥 event in the Bulgarian capital, Sofia, last April.
Responding to a question 鈥from Reuters about those contacts, the Nexo spokesperson said the company鈥檚 return to the US was 鈥渂ased on our ability to offer products in a compliant structure鈥 and was not related to its interactions with the Trump family.
鈥淥ur sports partnerships 鈥and event participation are not connected to our regulatory or operational status in the US,鈥 Nexo鈥檚 spokesperson said.
The Trump Organization family business has seen a sharp increase in income after delving into crypto with its own company, World Liberty Financial.
Some government and ethics experts have said the 鈥family鈥檚 development of crypto initiatives as Mr. Trump oversees US crypto policy constitutes a conflict of interest. The White House has said that no conflict of interest exists. 鈥 Reuters
