Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a warning to the public about a cryptocurrency called Shalom Coin (SHLM), which is being advertised as a potential investment token issued on the Ethereum blockchain.
In a disclaimer on SEC website, the Commission stated that the token is being promoted as an investment opportunity allegedly issued on the Ethereum Blockchain as an ERC-20 token.
“The attention of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Nigeria (‘the Commission’), has been drawn to the activities of certain cryptocurrency promoters advertising a digital token known as ‘Shalom Coin (SHLM)’ as an investment opportunity purportedly issued on the Ethereum Blockchain as an ERC-20 token,” the statement partly read.
According to SEC, preliminary intelligence reports indicate that “Shalom Coin (SHLM)” is being promoted across various online platforms and social media as a “meme coin” or community token, often accompanied by speculative claims about potential returns on investment.
The Commission further disclosed that “additional findings also suggest that the token’s smart contract includes features enabling the issuer or creator to modify critical parameters such as trading permissions, transaction fees, and total token supply,” according to Nairametrics.
The regulatory body warned that these developments make the likelihood of “potentially fraudulent crypto-asset schemes very high.”
SEC also clarified that the promoters and/or issuers of “Shalom Coin (SHLM)” are not registered to operate in any capacity within the Nigerian capital market.
“Consequently, ‘Shalom Coin (SHLM)’ is not approved by the Commission for issuance, trading, or offering to the investing public in Nigeria,” the statement added.
The Commission urged members of the public to exercise extreme caution when dealing with “Shalom Coin (SHLM)” or any other unregistered digital asset, emphasizing that anyone investing in such products does so entirely at their own risk.
SEC also reminded investors to verify the legitimacy of any digital asset, its promoters, and trading platforms through its official website www.sec.gov.ng/cmos before participating in any digital asset investment.
