Glorious sunny day in the ATX, y’all. So, what does “lancing the boil” mean, Big Red Car?
[Early stage, pre-MVP hamburger looking at you in the Hill Country.]
Suppose for a second you are a CEO — tough job. You have dealt with one of the List of Horribles, that compendium of distasteful things a CEO does that comes with the job and justifies the equity stake.
The average age of the American soldiers who jumped into France or landed at Normandy was twenty-two. That includes everyone including the men running the show. Plenty of those who fought were as young as eighteen.
When good confronted evil, when the flame of freedom flickered, the men sent to make it right were young. They had their entire lives in front of them, but first they had to save the world.
By midnight, the Americans would lose 2,500 KIA, 3,200 WIA, 2,000 MIA, and 26 POW. Many of them were paratroopers who had jumped into the darkness over France slightly after midnight.
Yesterday, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission sued Kik Interactive Inc, a Canadian company, for “…conducting an illegal $100 million securities offering of digital tokens.”
Here is the SEC Press Release.
The issuance of “tokens” has been a supercharged issue in the cryptocurrency world for some time as the issuers contend these tokens are not securities — therefore not subject to the requirements to issue a US SEC Form S-1, Registration and to provide quarterly, annual reports as well as reports of material events — while the SEC says maybe they are.
In any event, the issue has been out there for some time.
Many crypto advocates have suggested it will take a legal confrontation, like this one, for the issue to be resolved. Well, fellas, you got your wish.
The SEC is focused on the implications of what happens or doesn’t happen when a “security” is registered and issued.
Specifically, they contend, “By selling $100 million in securities without registering the offers or sales, we allege that Kik deprived investors of information to which they were legally entitled, and prevented investors from making informed investment decisions.”
Keep that “information” nugget in the front of your brain as you read deeper into this post.
The SEC’s view is that it is the securities issuing regulations and compliance therewith that provides the appropriate protections for investors. The requirements as noted above are:
1. The issuance of a US SEC Form S-1, Registration Statement — filed with the SEC for comment and revision prior to issuance and thereby providing a platform upon which to make disclosures about the financial health of the issuer, discuss risks and other information a buyer would find of vital interest.
2. The filing of quarterly reports, annual reports, and reports of “material” events and actions.
This would, in essence, create a public security. It is not end of the world. You cannot even see it from there.
Our President is wrapping things up in England on the heels of a state visit. He was invited by the Queen when the Parliament could not find the manners to do so after we had the Prime Minister over for a nice visit.
Queen Elizabeth honored him with a formal reception at her palace, a trooping of the line, a lunch, tea, and a state dinner. Got to exchange ideas with Prince Charles. What a treat!
That is the royal treatment. Thank you, Queen Elizabeth.
The political establishment was not so appreciative or civil. They insulted our President, a kid from Queens (get it, the Queen, the kid from Queens), who returned the fire.
In three days, we will celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Allied landings at Normandy, D-Day. In those landings, the Allies drove the first nails in Hitler’s coffin. Good began to triumph over evil. A year later, the war would be over in Europe and shortly thereafter in the Pacific.
It was a complex undertaking with the Americans, British, and the Canadians landing on the beaches and the Americans and British dropping paratroopers behind the landing beaches with American Rangers scaling the cliffs at Pointe du Hoc.
The Americans fought the toughest battle at Bloody Omaha whereat the US 1st Div and the 29th Div landed and almost were thrown back into the sea until American courage overcame the German opposition. It was a very close call and evacuating the Omaha landing force was considered.
All told there were 10,000 casualties that day — KIA, WIA, MIA, POW. Of that number, 2,500 were from the American 82nd and 101st Airborne units who jumped before dawn.
One of the first things I do when I take on a new CEO client is to ask, “What percentage of your decisions are good?”
I get two answers: forty-five percent or ninety percent. [True.]
I ask the same question of the same CEOs some time after we’ve been working together.
I get two answers:
1. The former 90%-ers now say, “Forty-five percent.”
2. The former 45%-ers now say, “About the same, maybe 50%, but now I know why.”
In making decisions, CEOs are going to make a lot of bad ones. If you follow the math above, more bad decisions than good decisions.
How do you get rid of the overhang of bad decisions? Mistake Amnesia!
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