OpenVPP Issues Clarification After SEC Denies Energy Tokenization Collaboration

The blockchain project OpenVPP ($OVPP) has found itself at the center of a storm after publicly claiming to be working with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commissioner Hester Peirce on energy tokenization.

What initially looked like a major milestone quickly unraveled, with the SEC pushing back on the claim and the project’s token facing a notable drop.

The claim and the pushback

On September 16, OpenVPP shared a photo on X of its founder standing with Peirce, accompanied by an announcement suggesting the project was “working alongside” the SEC on energy tokenization. The post generated buzz, positioning the project as a bridge between blockchain innovation and U.S. regulators.

But the narrative shifted when Peirce, often referred to in crypto circles as “Crypto Mom,” clarified 12 hours later that she does not partner with private projects. Instead, her involvement with startups comes through the SEC’s Crypto Task Force initiative, designed to boost dialogue, not collaborations.

The situation escalated further when OpenVPP hid Peirce’s reply, a move noticed by blockchain investigator ZachXBT.

He called out the discrepancy in a detailed post, highlighting the use of influencer promotions and lack of verification. The market reacted sharply, with the $OVPP token falling more than 30% in 24 hours.

Community divides and project outlook

OpenVPP later attributed the hidden reply to what it described as a panicked “24/7 intern” and quickly restored the comment, issuing a clarification.

CEO Parth Kapadia emphasized transparency, inviting ZachXBT to a public discussion to clear up concerns and outline the project’s roadmap.

Community responses have been mixed. Some users defended the project as a serious attempt to modernize energy infrastructure through tokenization, while others dismissed it as another example of hype-driven promotion.

“This was one of the most blatant grifts I’ve seen,” wrote X user TrimBot, criticizing the coordinated influencer marketing around the token.

OpenVPP’s stated mission is to tokenize energy assets as real-world assets (RWAs) and build blockchain-based settlement systems for utilities.

With ambitions to reshape a $10 trillion industry, the project emphasizes compliance-ready infrastructure and interoperability for distributed energy resources. Still, following the controversy, the $OVPP token is down nearly 39% in the past day, currently trading around $0.1588, according to CoinGecko.

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