The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has dropped its civil enforcement lawsuit against BitClout founder Nader Al-Naji. According to a joint filing with the court on March 12, the SEC and Al-Naji agreed to terminate the proceedings, permanently closing the case and prohibiting the regulator from bringing further lawsuits on the same allegations. The SEC stated that this decision was "based on the specific facts and circumstances of the case." The SEC had previously sued Al-Naji in July 2024, accusing him of wire fraud and selling unregistered securities through the crypto social network project BitClout (later associated with the decentralized social blockchain DeSo). He allegedly raised approximately $257 million by selling BitClout's native token BTCLT and misappropriated over $7 million of investor funds for personal expenses, including renting a Beverly Hills mansion. (CoinDesk)