>Collectibles are not exclusively purchased to be resold at a higher price ad infinitum.

Neither is crypto.

I use it to buy real things all the time.

Usually at a significant price discount, to boot!

In this case the SEC mentioned that there is nothing you can buy with Grams and there won't be for the near future. All you could do with Grams is trade them on exchanges.

Cryptocurrency. This is about crypto tokens.

A large number of people "invest" in collectibles only to resell them for a higher price. See: beany babies, trading card games, figurines, dolls. Just like those items tokens can be owned though their representation isn't much to look at. I'm not sure that is a useful distinction, unless you can explain further? E.g. why doesn't it apply to intellectual property?

I keep getting downvoted -- I'm not arguing that Telegram has a workable business plan, just that this isn't really something the SEC can regulate.

You can put collectibles on a shelf to impress likeminded friends. Or to feel happy. You can only trade securities and other similar assets. Also, generally if everyone bought figures to resell... I dont know how that can work... There is always an "unlucky fool" who buys from "scalpers" and keeps the item.

How about virtual collectibles in MMOs?

If purchased to resell, then yes it should be and already is mostly made illegal/breach of TOS.

People can buy things to enjoy, not just to resell.