Telegram says it needs 5-7 weeks for gathering SEC requested details tied to its token sale

Telegram has said that it needs five to seven weeks for gathering the information requested by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) related to its token sale.

The SEC’s requests cover 770 individuals or entities in over 12 countries, said Telegram's law firm Skadden, as reported by Inner City Press on Thursday. Skadden has reportedly been able to review only 76 entities since September and requires more time to cover all.

Last week, the SEC had urged a court to compel Telegram to provide full bank records tied to the company’s token sales worth $1.7 billion. Telegram then refused to share the records. Later, the court denied without prejudice the SEC’s request to get complete bank records, and ordered Telegram to provide “a proposed schedule for a review of the requested bank records to ensure that production of such records complies with foreign data privacy laws.”

Telegram had time until Jan. 9 to submit the proposed schedule. Skadden has responded to this schedule, saying it needs more time. 

The SEC sued Telegram last October for allegedly “illegal offering of digital-asset securities called Grams.” The case has been ongoing since then. Telegram, on its part, has refuted all the allegations made by the SEC. The company recently claimed that "if and when" Gram tokens launch, "they will constitute a currency and/or commodity – not securities under the federal securities laws.”