Bitwise Asset Management has clarified its position in response to charges brought by the SEC and the U.S. Department of Justice against the former CEOs of the now-defunct Bitwise Industries Inc.
The SEC has charged Irma Olguin Jr. and Jake Soberal for allegedly misleading investors regarding the financial status of their company. Monique C. Winkler, the regional director of the SEC’s San Francisco office, stated, “We allege that Soberal and Olguin resorted to blatant fraud, including the creation of fake financial documents, to deceive investors and raise money. In one instance, the defendants allegedly conspired to send a purported screenshot to investors of a company bank account showing a cash balance of $23.4 million. In actuality, the account had only $325,100 in it. That’s not a bank error—that’s fraud, and the SEC is taking action to hold the defendants accountable.”
In light of these developments, Bitwise Asset Management issued a statement on its website emphasizing that it has never had any association with Bitwise Industries. The statement reads, “San Francisco-based Bitwise Asset Management, Inc., the largest crypto index fund manager in America, has no relationship with, and has never had a relationship with, the now-defunct Bitwise Industries, a former technology company based in Fresno, California.”
Bitwise Asset Management is recognized as one of the leading and fastest-growing crypto asset managers globally. In 2022, the firm launched an active fund to attract more institutional investors and has requested SEC approval to introduce a spot Bitcoin ETF.