Kin (cryptocurrency)

Kin is a cryptocurrency used as money that can be earned, spent, or transferred within a digital ecosystem of consumer applications. Kin seeks to offer app developers a way to earn revenue that does not involve monetizing personal user data or displaying ads. Developers can earn Kin by integrating Kin into their app experiences. The project is supervised by the Kin Foundation, a nonprofit corporation established to manage the governance and growth of the cryptocurrency.

History
Kin was created by Kik Interactive, Inc., the creators of the KIK Messenger mobile app. The project conducted an initial coin offering (ICO) from September 12 to 26, 2017, raising roughing $47.5M. Combined with an earlier $50M from institutional investors, the total amount raised by Kik was around $97.5M.

On September 23, 2019, Kik Interactive CEO Ted Livingston announced that the company was shutting down Kik Messenger to focus on Kin. However, shortly after the shutdown announcement, multimedia holding company MediaLab AI, Inc. announced that it was acquiring Kik Messenger and would continue to operate the app and its Kin integration.

Kin Rewards Engine
The Kin Rewards Engine (KRE) is an algorithmic mechanism that allows apps to earn rewards for integrating and driving adoption of the Kin cryptocurrency.

Securities lawsuit
In June 2019, the SEC sued Kik Interactive over its 2017 ICO claiming that it was an illegal securities offering. The SEC charged Kik with selling its tokens to U.S. investors without registering their offer and sale as required by the U.S. securities laws.

On October 21, 2020 the lawsuit came to a close when a federal district court agreed with the SEC's assessment that Kik's ICO was a securities sale. In addition to a being assessed a $5M penalty, Kik was required for the next three years to provide notice to the SEC before engaging in enumerated future issuances, offers, sales, and transfers of digital assets.