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　　The most valuable NFT is facing a big problem.

　　According to foreign media reports on October 12, Yuga Labs, the parent company of the “bored ape” Bored Ape Yacht Club, is facing an investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to investigate whether its NFT sales violated federal law.

　　The report, citing an unnamed person familiar with the matter, said the Securities and Exchange Commission is reviewing whether some of the Miami-based company’s “NFTs” are more similar to securities and should be subject to the same disclosure rules. Leading Wall Street regulators are also reviewing the distribution of ApeCoin, a cryptocurrency issued by Yuga Labs that is distributed to holders of the Bored Ape Yacht Club and associated NFTs.

　　Yuga Labs then responded to the matter, stating that "policy makers and regulators are known to be constantly seeking to learn more about the novel world of Web3. We hope to work with other industries and regulators to define and shape the thriving Ecosystem. As a leader in the field, Yuga is committed to fully cooperating with any investigation along the way.”

　　Yuga Labs completed a $450 million financing at a valuation of $4 billion in March this year, attracting top capital in the crypto circle. A16z led the investment, Animoca Brands, LionTree, Sound Ventures, Thrive Capital, FTX, MoonPay and other institutions participated in the investment. Since then, its team has also recruited a number of executives from the world's top companies to join the team and announced its entry into the metaverse.

　　At present, the "Boring Ape" series of NFTs has become a hot business card for the NFT concept in the world. With this series and the acquired "CryptoPunks" series of NFTs, Yuga Labs has become the strongest studio in the NFT field, and the SEC's investigation into it also means that U.S. regulators have noticed the financial nature of NFTs.

　　According to CoinGecko, the price of APEcoin fell 7.5% to $4.64 following the news of the SEC investigation into Yuga Labs.

　　On the same day, the Twitter account of Otherside, a metaverse platform owned by Yuga Labs, was also suspected of being hacked, and the account name and profile were tampered with. On October 13, Otherside officially announced that its Twitter account has been restored to normal use with the help of the Twitter team.

　　Judging by the SEC's habit, Yuga Labs has not been accused of wrongdoing, and an investigation does not imply an indictment of the company, but the details of the SEC's attention are noteworthy.

　　Regarding whether NFTs are securities, there is currently no official regulatory agency to explain them, but the US's regulatory attitude towards cryptocurrencies can be used for reference.

　　SEC Chairman Gary Gensler said in September that the core principles of SEC regulations apply to all securities markets, including securities and intermediaries in the cryptocurrency market. Gary Gensler also mentioned: "Of the nearly 10,000 coins in the cryptocurrency market, I think the vast majority of them are securities. The issuance and sale of these thousands of encrypted security tokens are covered under securities laws."

　　In the existing legal framework in the United States, SEC officials only explicitly stated that Bitcoin and Ethereum are not securities, and other cryptocurrencies are inclined to be included in the scope of securities law supervision by the SEC. And NFTs are closely related to cryptocurrencies, that is, they are also bought, sold and held using blockchain technology. This emerging token type is more difficult to determine whether it is a commodity or a security category. The SEC's investigation will provide a new path for NFT regulation .

　　NFTs represented by "Boring Ape" have been in a bear market for several months. As of now, the floor price of “Boring Ape” is 74.2 ETH, or about $95,000, which has been cut in half compared to the peak.