Gannon Giguiere
U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Litigation Release No. 25920 / January 3, 2024
Securities and Exchange Commission v. Giguiere, et al., No. 1:21-cv-05923 (S.D.N.Y. filed July 9, 2021)
SEC Obtains Final Judgment Against California Man for Insider Trading
On December 28, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission obtained a final judgment against defendant Gannon Giguiere, whom the SEC previously charged with insider trading in advance of an announcement by Long Blockchain Company (formerly known as Long Island Iced Tea Co.) that it was going to “pivot” from its existing beverage business to blockchain technology, which caused the company’s stock price to soar.
The SEC’s complaint was filed on July 9, 2021, in federal district court in the Southern District of New York. The complaint alleged that Giguiere purchased 35,000 shares of Long Blockchain stock within hours of receiving confidential information about Long Blockchain from his friend and co-defendant Oliver-Barret Lindsay, who had been tipped by co-defendant Eric Watson, who had signed a confidentiality agreement not to disclose Long Blockchain’s business plans. According to the complaint, the company’s stock price skyrocketed after a press release was issued announcing its shift to blockchain technology. The complaint further alleged that within two hours of the announcement, Giguiere sold his shares for over $160,000 in illicit profits.
Without admitting or denying the SEC’s allegations, Giguiere consented to entry of a final judgment permanently enjoining him from violations of the antifraud provisions of Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder and ordering him to pay a civil monetary penalty of $325,000.
The SEC’s investigation has been conducted by Lindsay S. Moilanen, Mark R. Sylvester, Diego Brucculeri, and Sheldon L. Pollock, and the litigation is being led by Ms. Moilanen, Chevon Walker, and Mary Kay Dunning. The case is being supervised by Mr. Pollock.