In the tug-of-war between Binance and the SEC, the hostilities never seem to end. Sometimes it is the American regulatory body which seems to take the advantage, sometimes the defenders of the crypto exchange platform fight back vehemently. The latest developments reveal that the latter have found a weighty argument, drawn from the Wahi – Coinbase affair, to counter the attacks of the Securities and Exchange Commission against the crypto industry.
Binance strikes back: Strong response to the SEC in the Wahi affair
Despite the semblance of current bull run, Binance US and Binance Nigeria do not seem to benefit from the situation, recently having to let go of 200 employees. However, a glimmer of hope appears with the discovery of a flaw potentially leading to a victory for Binance lawyers. An in-depth analysis by CoinGap sheds new light on this tense situation.
Binance and its allies hit back at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in a scathing response filed March 8 in response to a request for additional authority. The Binance Holdings legal team highlighted the Default Judgment Entered in Coinbase SEC Insider Trading Case Against Wahiemphasizing that it was obtained in the absence of opposition from the respondent Sameer Ramani.
In their plea, Binance lawyers also pointed to theSEC omission of Judge Torres’ decision in SEC v. Ripple Labs, which had rejected the argument that crypto token sales constituted “investment contracts.” Furthermore, they noted that the Wahi case had ignored the D.C. Circuit’s decision. in SEC v. Life Partners.
CFTC Commissioner Caroline Pham also criticized the expanded classification of digital assets as securities by the SEC in 2022. Additionally, the SEC settled the case with other defendants in the Wahi case after the latter challenged the SEC’s interpretation of the securities laws.
Ultimately, Binance, the issuer of the BNBs, asked the court to reject the SEC’s attempt to obtain a default judgment in response to a joint motion by Binance to dismiss the lawsuit. Coinbase Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal also rejected the idea that the default judgment in the Wahi case constitutes a valid precedent for other litigation or for claiming jurisdiction over the crypto industry.
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