ya, been playing 'em since before they got "popular," and a pink r/u is always the riskiest because you have no filings (pre, def-14s, etc) to back you up. Of course, some paid out.
You prolly recall the Mariner something or other (MCII?), when NASD forced them to abide by the ex-date.
But, then IPOR and especially MXSV just flat out reneged with no penalty whatsoever.
In this case, either the CEO was trying to pull a fast one (seen *plenty* of those) and sneak through on the record date, OR he didn't realize they'd have to file with NASDAQ/FINRA and get an ex-date. Either way, it looks like the r/u provision didn't make it to FINRA.
I've followed this a bit, but don't know whether the TA is gagged; if not, somebody could call and see what the instructions to brokers are.