Richard Heart (born Richard James Schueler) is an American cryptocurrency founder. Heart created the HEX cryptocurrency in 2019. [1] He later created three more cryptocurrencies: PulseChain and PulseX, forks of Ethereum and Uniswap, respectively, and the INC token. [2][3] He is currently believed to reside in Helsinki, Finland. [4]
Early life and education
Richard Heart was born on October 9, 1979, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.[5]
Career
Heart's career began with the Florida home-based car audio system business, Audio Ecstasy, Inc,[6] Heart later founded a marketing business, and in 2002 incurred a default judgement and fines from a court in Washington, US, for sending unsolicited commercial email. [7] He later expanded his business operations to Panama but eventually returned to the U.S. after facing legal issues related to his business dealings there. [8]
He later wrote a self-help book, sciVive, which was made available for free online in both text and audio versions.[9][10]
On December 2nd 2019, Heart launched the cryptocurrency HEX, which bills itself as the first blockchain certificate of deposit by allocating inflation to stakers instead of validators or miners.[11]
He later created PulseChain and PulseX. PulseChain, a fork of Ethereum, received funds from over 40,000 cryptocurrency wallets.[12] PulseX, a fork of decentralized exchange Uniswap, was also launched under the PulseChain ecosystem. According to filings made by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, collectively the two projects raised more than $1 billion in financing.[13]
In 2023, The Highest of Stakes,[14] a movie about Heart and HEX was released in cinemas in the USA and the U.K. It was later made available on AppleTV,[15] Amazon Prime Video, Google Play, YouTube, Vudu and many other outlets.[16]
The Highest of Stakes has received overwhelming reviews for its comprehensive coverage and unbiased storytelling. Critics have likened it to the "Tiger King of crypto," with its enthralling narrative captivating viewers. The film's ability to present a balanced view, allowing audiences to form their own opinions, has been particularly appreciated.[17]
Non-profit fundraising
Heart created an initiative where donors to the SENS Research Foundation would receive cryptocurrency. Over $25 million was raised over 5 days.[18][19]
Controversies and criticisms
On July 31, 2023,[20] the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charged Heart with defrauding investors out of $12.1 million[21] and illegally raising more than $1 billion in unregistered cryptocurrency offerings to finance personal luxury goods purchases, including a 555.55-carat black diamond,[20] The Enigma, for $4.3 million in cryptocurrency, renaming it the "HEX.com diamond".[22][23]
References
- ↑ "Hex (HEX): What It Is, History, and Concerns".
- ↑ "What is PulseChain? A Guide to the Ethereum Hard Fork". Medium. 28 September 2023.
- ↑ "What is PulseX". 22 February 2022.
- ↑ "SEC v. Richard J. Schueler" (PDF). SEC.Gov.
- ↑ Sharma, Ritika (August 2023). "Richard Schuele: Know the Founder of HEX and PulseChain". The Coin Republic. Archived from the original on 2 August 2023. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ↑ Winner, Don. "Richard James Schueler - Friggin Spam King". Panama Guide. Archived from the original on 31 October 2017. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ↑ "Free-speech group Peacefire.org wins a legal round in its fight against unsolicited e-mail, invoking Washington state's anti-spam law". ZDNet.
- ↑ Rustin, Sats (31 May 2022). "Richard Heart The 'Spam King' – Full Story". Bitcoin News. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ↑ "sciVive book" (PDF).
- ↑ "sciVive audio book". YouTube.
- ↑ "What Is Hex?". Investopedia.com.
- ↑ "Everything Blockchain Releases PulseChain Update". 28 July 2021.
- ↑ "SEC Charges Hex Founder Richard Hear".
- ↑ "The Highest of Stakes".
- ↑ "The Highest of Stakes - Apple TV". 4 August 2023.
- ↑ "The Highest of Stakes: Where to Watch and Why It's a Must-See". pulsecoinlist.com. Retrieved 2023-12-19.
- ↑ "The Highest of Stakes: Where to Watch and Why It's a Must-See". pulsecoinlist.com. Retrieved 2023-12-19.
- ↑ "Pulsechain cryptocurrency raises 'mindblowing' $25M in five days". 20 July 2021.
- ↑ "PulseChain Airdrop". 25 June 2021.
- 1 2 "US SEC charges Youtuber Richard Heart with unregistered crypto offerings fraud". The Economic Times. 2023-07-31. ISSN 0013-0389. Retrieved 2023-08-11.
- ↑ Stempel, Jonathan (31 July 2023). "US SEC says Hex crypto founder defrauded investors, spent money on 'Enigma' diamond". reuters. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ↑ McKeever, Vicky (10 February 2022). "Billion-year-old black diamond bought with cryptocurrency for $4.3 million". CNBC. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ↑ "The Enigma: Billion-year-old black diamond sold for £3.16m". BBC News. 10 February 2022. Retrieved 2 August 2023.