**SEC Scores Partial Win in Opporty ICO Case**

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has secured a partial victory in its case against blockchain firm Opporty International and its owner, Sergii Grybniak. The SEC accused them of conducting a fraudulent initial coin offering (ICO) by selling unregistered securities.

On September 24, U.S. District Judge Eric Komitee ruled that the SEC had proven Opporty and Grybniak unlawfully offered unregistered securities in the U.S. The judge confirmed that the "OPP" tokens sold in the ICO were investment contracts under the Howey test and should have been registered.

The SEC initially took legal action against Opporty in January 2021, claiming the ICO violated Section 5 of the Securities Act of 1933. Grybniak argued the sale was exempt under Reg D/S exemptions, but the judge found Opporty failed to meet these requirements due to "directed selling efforts" in the U.S.

The ICO, conducted from September 2017 to October 2018, raised $600,000 from nearly 200 investors. Opporty marketed itself as a blockchain-based platform for small businesses and their customers in the U.S. The SEC maintained that Opporty broke the rules by not registering the sale.