Amid wave of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) lawsuits against major cryptocurrency platforms, Stuart Alderoty, Ripple’s General Counsel, boldly challenges SEC’s shock and fear tactics
In a week filled with significant legal action by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against major players in the cryptocurrency space, Ripple’s General Counsel Stuart Alderoty remains of challenge.
In a recent tweet, Alderoty questioned the SEC’s strategy, which he described as a “shock and awe” strategy, maintaining his faith in the rule of law. This comes amid lawsuits by the SEC against renowned cryptocurrency exchanges Coinbase and Binance, accusing them of operating as unregistered national stock exchanges, among other allegations.
The SEC’s allegations are broad and implicate several popular cryptocurrencies, including Cardano (ADA), Solana (SOL), and Polygon (MATIC), as unregistered securities.
This extensive list also includes Binance’s BNB, BUSD stablecoin, and a variety of other crypto assets such as FIL, ATOM, SAND, MANA, ALGO, AXS, and COTI. The fallout was swift, with the likes of Robinhood delisting Cardano, MATIC, and SOL due to the legal action.
In light of these developments, the outcome of the Ripple case becomes even more critical. As James “MetaLawMan” Murphy explained on Twitter, if Judge Torres in the SEC v Ripple case rules that XRP tokens traded on secondary markets are not securities, it could potentially undermine the entire basis of Ripple’s business. the SEC against Coinbase and Binance. Of course, the reverse is also true; a ruling in favor of the SEC would significantly strengthen their case.
However, several caveats exist. As noted by MetaLawMan, even if Judge Torres rules in favor of Ripple, his ruling will not serve as a binding precedent for other cases. Yet other judges, including Judge Rearden, assigned to the Coinbase case and who has only been a judge for six months, may lean towards Judge Torres’ reasoning.
Additionally, differences exist in the SEC complaints against Coinbase and Binance, adding even more complexity to the issue. Nonetheless, regardless of initial decisions, it is prudent to anticipate years of appeals, making this an important development to watch in the world of cryptocurrency regulation.
