The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been moving to crack down on cryptocurrency exchanges Coinbase and Binance for allegedly trading unregistered securities.

Main news: A video recorded in 2018 recently surfaced featuring SEC Chairman Gary Gensler claiming that Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC), Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH), Litecoin (CRYPTO: LTC) and Bitcoin Cash is not a security.

"Bitcoin. Ether. Litecoin. Bitcoin Cash. Why am I calling out these four names? They are not stocks. Three-quarters of this market is probably not a stock," Gensler said in the viral video Posted by Sam Lyman, former Senior Writer at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Lyman tweeted the video saying: "If Gary always looks skinny maybe it's because he's been eating nothing but his own words since 2018."

If Gary always looks skinny, maybe it's because he hasn't eaten anything but his own words since 2018.

"Bitcoin. Ether. Litecoin. Bitcoin Cash. Why am I calling out these four names? They are not securities.

Three-quarters of this market is probably not stocks.”

— Sam Lyman (@SamLyman33) June 12, 2023

Why This Matters: The SEC has filed legal proceedings against both Binance and Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao. The allegations include multiple violations of U.S. securities regulations, a move the exchange called a “hasty attempt to seek jurisdiction from other regulators and leave those alone.” concerns of investors".

Interestingly, documents filed by Gibson Dunn and Latham & Watkins, two prominent law firms representing Binance, reveal that Gensler allegedly offered to serve as a consultant to the cryptocurrency exchange via March 2019 conversations with Binance executives, including CZ. Furthermore, Gensler even met CZ for lunch in Japan that same month.

Gensler in February reiterated that Bitcoin is not a security but a commodity. He also said that "everything other than bitcoin is a security."

Price Action: According to Benzinga Pro, at the time of writing, BTC was trading at $26,110, up 1.14% in 24 hours.

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