The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a warning to the public against investing in Zugacoin and Samzuga GPT.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the Commission identified both as unauthorised crypto assets and stated that their promoters or issuers are not registered to operate within the Nigerian capital market.
It further emphasized that these cryptocurrencies have not received approval for public issuance.
“Preliminary investigations revealed that ZUGACOIN and SAMZUGA GPT are Meme coins. Meme coins generally have no use case, intrinsic value, or tangible projects backing them.
“Any attributed value to meme coin is usually linked to its promoters or the community effort which more often than not are susceptible to pump and dump schemes (a form of fraudulent activity that involves promoters spreading false or misleading information to create a buying frenzy that “pumps” up the price of a ‘coin’ and then “dumps” the coin by selling their own coins at the inflated price. Once the promoters dump their coins and stop hyping the coin, the coin price typically falls and investors lose money),” the statement said in part.
The Commission advised members of the public to avoid purchasing or promoting these or similar crypto coins, warning that anyone who chooses to invest does so entirely at their own risk.
“The Commission similarly reminds the investing public of the need to always VERIFY the authenticity of crypto/virtual or digital assets, the registration status of their promoters and trading platforms via the Commission’s dedicated portal: [https://home.sec.gov.ng/fintech-and-innovation-hub-finport/registered-fintech-operators/](https://home.sec.gov.ng/fintech-and-innovation-hub-finport/registered-fintech-operators/) or [www.sec.gov.ng/cmos](http://www.sec.gov.ng/cmos) before engaging in any form of virtual or digital assets investment,” the statement added.