The 8 Biggest Bombshells From the SEC's Kik ICO Lawsuit

That's all according to a complaint filed Tuesday by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, alleging that Kik conducted an "Illegal $100 million securities offering" with a September 2017 initial coin offering for its kin token.

Details revealed Tuesday by the SEC show the company knew it faced pushback from regulators, but that didn't stop Kik from moving forward.

To prevent its equity holders from getting wiped out, Kik had to make the cryptocurrency path work, at least according to the version of events presented by the SEC. In a statement released Tuesday evening, Kik CEO Ted Livingston said the SEC complaint "Presents a highly selective and grossly misleading picture of the facts and circumstances surrounding our 2017 pre-sale and token distribution event. We look forward to presenting the full story in court."

In a year ending in mid-2016, Kik brought in $2.2 million.

At the time Kik decided to pursue an ICO, its expenses were running at $3 million per month.

As the complaint puts it, "Despite Kik Messenger's initial success Kik's costs have always far outpaced its revenues, and the company has never been profitable." Further, the complaint alleges, its "Executives had no realistic plan to increase revenues through its existing operations."

According to the complaint, Kik hired an investment bank in 2016 to look for a buyer.

Kik disclosed more information to private-sale buyers than it did to the general public.

Kik built a system for kin investors to get special digital stickers in its messenger app.

Kik reached out to the Ontario Securities Commission right after the SEC's DAO report.