I actually saw this too but you wrote an over generalization that needs to be fixed.  Basically he said that the mining ban is a myth and that prior to the ICO ban he was contacted by officials who gathered information about NEO from him.  After that NEO offered their refund which obviously not a single person took them up on, and the ICO ban is still real, the exchange ban is potentially permanent, and crypto trading in general has no indication as to whether it will be allowed in any sense whatsoever.  There is uncertainty in regards to over the counter exchanges as well, so it's good not to jump to conclusions and wait to see what the reality is.  The ban IS real.