SEC Charges Cost Mila Kunis’ Stoner Cats Ban Imposed by NFT Marketplaces
Rariable and OpenSea confirmed the Stoner Cats NFT trade’s restriction. Following the SEC settlement, Blur shows no active listings.
The Stoner Cats NFT (nonfungible token) project is no longer tradable at major marketplaces, for instance, Blur, OpenSea, and Rarible. This situation comes after a declaration last week that the creators had been accused of selling unregistered securities by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
OpenSea Replicate Blur Decision to Reveal Active Stoner Cats NFTs
The Ethereum NFTs, linked to an animated series comprising numerous celebrities, were previously sold in 2021. Since then, they have been available for sale in different marketplaces. However, Blur and OpenSea failed to depict active Stoner Cats NFTs’ listings at the time of writing. Further, Rarible did not indicate any projects on its site.
Despite OpenSea still showing the project page, an official revealed that the purchase, sale, or transfer of Stoner Cats NFTs through OpenSea was not possible anymore. Via its Community Standards page, OpenSea claims that the site is also utilized as a blockchain explorer for nonfungible tokens. As such, it prefers keeping project pages operational even when trading has been restricted.
Rariable Restricts Stoner Cats NFTs Citing Market Surveillance
Rariable revealed that the marketplace has ‘restricted them on the basis of their market surveillance of present events.’ Blur failed to respond to requests for affirmation of a trading restriction.
Despite the nonfungible tokens not being listed on Rarible and their inability to be traded on OpenSea, they remain on the blockchain and in the holders’ wallets. Additionally, their sale at marketplaces that list them, X2Y2 and LooksRare, is possible. At this time, these marketplaces contained active Stoner Cats NFT listings.
Mila Kunis, whose Orchard Farm Productions studio created the project, co-created Stoner Cats. The project entailed the sale of Ethereum nonfungible tokens that granted access to the six-episode web series that focuses on the exploits of cartoon cats who become wasted. Kunis and Ashton Kutcher, her husband, voiced some cats. Famous personalities such as actress Jane Fonda, comedian Chris Rock, Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin, and ‘Family Guy’ creator Seth McFarlane also voiced some cats.
Securities and Exchange Commission Accuses Stoner Cats for Creators Taking Cuts on Secondary Market Sales
In July 2021, Stoner Cats sold 10,420 nonfungible tokens, generating more than $8M. Additionally, SEC data indicates that the creators took a cut from the secondary market sales that came after, amounting to more than $20M.
The creators settled with the Securities and Exchange Commission concerning claims of selling unregistered securities and reached an agreement to pay a civil fine of $1M. This fine will be utilized to create a Fair Find to repay investors. Eligibility specifics are yet to be publicized. Further, the agency claimed that the developers of Stoner Cats agreed to abolish the remaining nonfungible tokens.
Last week, Stoner Cats NFTs’ sales increased following the release of the SEC news. Data from NFT Price Floor shows that on Wednesday, prices rose from a floor price of 0.019ETH ($30) to a present peak of 0.082ETH ($131) early Thursday. As of last week, the nonfungible tokens’ trading was still taking place on Blur and OpenSea.
