Richard Heart Secures Landmark Victory as SEC Withdraws Case Against HEX, PulseChain, and PulseX

In a significant development for the cryptocurrency industry, the Securities and Exchange Commission has chosen not to pursue further legal action against entrepreneur Richard Heart and his blockchain projects. The SEC notified the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York that it does not intend to file an amended complaint, marking the end of a legal battle that began in July 2023. This outcome represents what Richard Heart characterizes as a complete regulatory breakthrough for the sector.

The conclusion of this case carries substantial implications for how the cryptocurrency industry navigates regulatory oversight. Richard Heart wasted no time in highlighting the significance of this outcome, emphasizing that the court has already dismissed the SEC’s entire case, with no possibility of a revised complaint. He noted that this resolution provides his projects with regulatory clarity that few other cryptocurrency ventures can claim in the current landscape.

The Legal Timeline: Court Dismissal and SEC’s Strategic Retreat

The case began when the SEC filed charges against Richard Heart for allegedly selling unregistered securities across three cryptocurrency ventures. The initial complaint alleged that Heart raised more than $1 billion from investors in HEX, PulseChain, and PulseX. Regulators also charged that he misappropriated approximately $12 million from investors, which he allegedly used to purchase high-value assets including luxury sports cars, premium watches, and a rare 555-carat black diamond known as “The Enigma.”

A pivotal moment arrived on February 28, 2025, when Judge Carol Bagley Amon of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York dismissed the SEC’s original complaint. However, the judge granted the regulatory agency a deadline of March 20 to submit a revised complaint—a deadline that was subsequently extended to April 21, 2025. The SEC’s decision to abandon the case entirely means all of the regulator’s original allegations against Richard Heart and his projects have been effectively tossed aside without the prospect of renewed prosecution.

Why This Legal Victory Stands Apart

Richard Heart’s characterization of this outcome as “the only case where the SEC lost and crypto won across the board” reflects the unusual nature of this conclusion. Most regulatory battles in the cryptocurrency space have ended with some form of settlement or ongoing enforcement action. In this instance, every single claim brought by the SEC against Richard Heart and his projects has been dismissed without any amended complaint to follow.

Richard Heart articulated a particularly notable aspect of this case, observing that the SEC essentially sued software code itself rather than prosecuting traditional securities fraud. This distinction carries weight in discussions about how regulators approach decentralized projects and blockchain-based innovations. The dismissal therefore represents not merely a legal victory for Richard Heart personally, but potentially a marker in how courts interpret regulatory authority over decentralized cryptocurrency protocols.

HEX Market Performance: A Complex Picture

While the legal resolution has provided welcome news for Richard Heart and his supporters, the market performance of his flagship token tells a more complicated story. HEX has experienced severe underperformance during the extended legal proceedings. The token currently trades at approximately 0.2% of its all-time high value, having declined 99.6% from its previous peak of $0.5108 before the SEC charges were filed in July 2023.

However, recent trading activity suggests potential momentum shift. Since the legal matter reached its favorable conclusion, HEX has displayed some positive price action. According to data from CoinGecko, the token appreciated 14% over the preceding 24-hour period, with a more substantial 50% surge observed over the previous seven days. Over a longer timeframe, HEX showed a 30% gain across the year, indicating that market participants may be recalibrating their assessment of the token following the SEC’s withdrawal of charges.

The disconnect between HEX’s historical performance and its recent recovery highlights a broader question: whether renewed regulatory clarity will enable Richard Heart’s projects to rebuild investor confidence and market valuation. The legal victory removes significant uncertainty that has weighed on the token’s price throughout the drawn-out litigation process.