CarbonMeta Technologies Inc (COWI)

[1manband]

That should be obvious. The 10-K is delinquent. That means the public does not have the information they are legally entitled to have, but the Company does. If they repurchased shares while delinquent, it is considered to be manipulative trading as they would be trading on information not known to the market.

That is exactly the scenario that forced the SEC to enact the law in the first place.

That is also why just about all companies institute "blackout periods" which prohibit officers and directors from trading the company's stock within a specified period before and after the release of financial information, including 10-Q's and 10-K's. Otherwise, it is considered to be manipulative and insider trading.