Of crimes and passions - It is true that the SEC does not reveal any information on investigations they may be conducting.
The only fact known for sure is that some rules about stock were not followed correctly. For that BI received the DTC chill.
The SEC does not investigate alleged problems themselves unless it is a large company - BI is not. They have attorneys in private practice to conduct an initial interview with the person making the allegation. The attorneys are usually polite. The large companies usually get away with misleading PRs because they are good at it. Because of the cost, the SEC does not usually spend dollars to pick pennies.
Given the DTC chill, there were mistakes obviously made. It does not mean they are uncorrectable. The chill will remain in place until sufficient corrective action evidence is provided by an attorney admitted to practice before the SEC. The only people the SEC prosecutes are those who are known PDs or intentional violations of the security laws. Founders have a great deal of leeway in how they handle internal transactions as long as the rules are not broken and even some of those they overlook because it is just not worth the trouble.
The allegations against JB are just that - allegations. We might not approve of what he did in some circumstances but a stockholders remedy most likely will be to hire an attorney and seek a remedy in court. Most attorneys will not even be interested unless there is substantial recovery possible. Remember, they get at least 1/3 of the recovery and usually 1/2 if they go to court.
If the BOD can satisfy DTC to remove the chill, nobody loses a substantial investment, and there is sufficient recovery possible then there might some successful litigation. Otherwise there is no recovery because there is "probably" no suitable cause for action. This would have to be brought as a stockholder action. Don't expect the SEC to resolve all of the allegations. It's not gone to happen.
The recent announcements of proposed sales of BI stock could be any of three reasons:
1. The seller needs the money. This is most likely JB's case. He has ongoing legal bills to pay.
2. Condon and Berry are more likely registering stock for future sale. They seem to register the same amount each 90 days with no evidence that they have actually sold anything. Doing this deed ahead of time is much better for the PPS than registering in a rapid uptrending market! Perhaps they know something we don't, most likely, and want to preregister to cash in on a future better PPS. While one may not agree that they should have the number of shares they have, it was JB's right to grant those shares as long as they were accounted for properly. BI will have to square things with the NLRB if their are problems with employees pay or taxes. That is just a business expense when they have the money.
3. Taking BI private. BI's lack of cash is the most troubling situation. If the BOD can raise substantial cash then we have a totally new ball game. Without it, the company may not survive. The value of BI would then be the patents alone. Increasing the number of authorized shares looks like an indication that funding may be in the near future. If the BOD was going to take the company private then why increase the number of shares?
If money shows up, business gets started, and the chill is gone, we can forget about the allegations unless some investor wants to make a legal case against JB. His chief asset is his shares in BI. Right now they are not worth much. That could change!
So my question is do BI's shareholders want a percentage of something or 100% of nothing. That is the real question. Only time will tell the outcome. The BOD has no legal obligation to inform us of their intra-quarterly actions unless they choose to announce funding or contracts, or are legally obligated to do so.
I share the angst about the PPS not being currently in the $1-3 range. Frankly, there is nothing we can do about it until the BOD either makes an announcement or makes their year end report in July. I will not hold my breath thinking the SEC will cure all the ills of the past. They do not care about mismanagement, only proven violations of the law and do not care that much about small stocks like BI. I do believe it's going to be a long hot summer!
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