According to BlockBeats, on October 11, the cryptocurrency derivatives trading platform Bitnomial sued the U.S. SEC, questioning its regulatory authority over XRP futures contracts. According to the lawsuit filed by Bitnomial, the U.S. SEC contacted the trading platform shortly after the lawsuit was filed, claiming that XRP futures are "security futures" and are jointly governed by the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and stated that if Bitnomial continues to be listed, it will violate federal securities laws. The SEC also stated that Bitnomial must follow additional requirements before listing XRP futures, including registering as a national securities trading platform.
The lawsuit states: "The SEC believes that the underlying asset XRP is an investment contract and therefore transactions in XRP constitute securities under the (Securities Exchange Act)." Bitnomial disagrees with the SEC's view that XRP is an investment contract and therefore a security, and that XRP futures are therefore security futures.