Tezos, a blockchain project headquartered in California, USA, had previously successfully raised $232 million through initial coin offerings, which once became the "headlines" of major media. But now, the company has received a penalty order from the US financial regulator.

According to a Reuters report, the U.S. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has announced that Tezos founder Arthur Breitman will be prohibited from engaging in securities trading-related businesses for two years, and he will also be required to pay a $20,000 fine. Not only that, but during Arthur Breitman's tenure at Morgan Stanley, he also made false claims about the project. However, Arthur Breitman has denied the regulator's allegations, according to related reports.

The US Financial Industry Regulatory Authority is an industry self-regulatory agency approved by the US Congress in 2007. It is mainly responsible for supervising securities dealers, brokers and securities firms in the United States. According to a Reuters report, Arthur Breitman registered Tezos while working at Morgan Stanley from 2014 to 2015.

According to related reports, the U.S. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority believes that Arthur Breitman did not disclose his participation in the development and investment of Tezos while working at Morgan Stanley Bank, thus violating regulatory requirements-that is, requiring registered brokers to notify employers of future transactions. A side hustle that may bring financial compensation. In addition, Arthur Breitman also provided false information when answering Morgan Stanley's questionnaire about employees engaging in any outside business activities.

Since its record initial coin offering funding round last July, Tezos has been hit with four class-action lawsuits alleging it violated U.S. securities laws by issuing crypto tokens that were “unregistered securities.”

However, Reuters reported that Arthur Breitman's lawyers sought to downplay the impact of the sanctions on the Tezos blockchain network, which is still under scrutiny from relevant regulators.