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This entity has operations withinSEC-Davao’s Area of Responsibility and has a branch in DAVAO CITY.
According to information gathered by the Commission, LodiTech has been using several social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Discord in enticing people to invest their hard-earned money in LODICOIN, a virtual currency created and operated by Lodi Technologies Incorporated through lodicoins.com, the official website of the virtual currency.
In its “whitepaper,” LodiTech put up a disclaimer that LodiCoins cannot and should not be considered as a share or security of any type.
However, LodiCoins and Lodi Technologies Incorporated’s CEO/co-founder hyped or shilled on Facebook that Lodicoin would be listed at ten times the pre-sale or original private price, making it appear that those who will purchase the coin in the Initial Coin Offering (ICO) will earn at least 1000% in profits.
Hence, no matter how LODICOIN portrays itself as “utility token,” clearly, $LODI is being offered for its potential for price appreciation, not to mention profit opportunities through commissions, bonuses and other incentives. In this case, the sales materials and literature describe LODICOIN as having profit potential (in the words of the CEO -“we will list at ten times more than the pre-sale price”), and therefore, it is offered in such a way that the investor “expects profits,” as to ultimately, consider it as a security.
In other words, merely calling a token a “utility” token or structuring it to provide some utility does not prevent the token from being a security. Tokens and offerings that incorporate features and marketing efforts that emphasize the potential for profits based on the entrepreneurial or managerial efforts of others contain the hallmarks of a security.
Accordingly, these virtual currencies and assets cannot be masked and presented as currencies when it is essentially a security in character which must be subject to registration in order to protect the investing public.
Therefore, said entities or individuals must be duly registered with the Commission and that any person or entity intending to offer and sell its investment contract are required to secure the necessary registration and/or license from the Commission as well.
Lodi Technologies Incorporated doing business under the name and style/s of LODITECH had been REGISTERED as a corporation with the Commission on August 2, 2021, HOWEVER, IT OPERATES WITHOUT THE NECESSARY LICENSE AND/OR AUTHORITY to solicit, accept or take investments/placements from the public nor to issue investment contracts and other forms of securities defined under Section 3 of the Securities Regulation Code (SRC). In fact, Lodi Technologies’ primary purpose is that of being a BPO service provider which is inconsistent with its actual business model.
LodiCoins is NEITHER REGISTERED as a Virtual Asset Service Provider(VASP) with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and DOES NOT HAVE A CORRESPONDING CERTIFICATE OF AUTHORITY with the BSP as a Money Service Business (MSB) required under the Guidelines for Virtual Asset Service Providers (BSP Circular No. 1108, Series of 2021).
Hence, the public is advised NOT TO INVEST or STOP INVESTING in Lodicoins and Lodi Technologies Incorporated’s investment-taking scheme which operate without the necessary licenses and/or authority.
For the complete list of advisories, you may visit https://www.sec.gov.ph/investors-education-and-information/advisories/
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