⚠️ US Federal Judge Partially Allows Lawsuit Against Binance and Changpeng Zhao ⚠️
Judge Amy Berman Jackson upholds many of the SEC's claims against Binance, though the crypto exchange achieved partial victories in some areas.
Federal Judge Amy Berman Jackson of the District Court of Columbia has allowed part of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) charges against the cryptocurrency exchange Binance and its founder Changpeng Zhao to proceed.
The SEC accused Binance, Binance.US, and Zhao of offering unregistered brokerage, trading, and clearing services for digital securities in the U.S. The regulatory body also brought similar charges against Coinbase, Kraken, Consensys, and MetaMask.
As reported by Coindesk, on Friday, Judge Jackson decided that the SEC's charges against Binance regarding the Initial Coin Offering and ongoing sales of BNB, BNB Vault, and staking services, as well as charges related to non-registration and fraud allegations, can proceed. She also rejected Binance and Zhao's request to dismiss the charges concerning secondary BNB sales and Simple Earn.
The SEC's lawsuit against former Binance CEO Changpeng "CZ" Zhao also remains. Zhao is accused of acting as a "controlling person." He is currently serving a four-month prison sentence, which was imposed for, among other things, the lack of anti-money laundering measures on the platform. This action was initiated by the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Treasury Department. The SEC is conducting a separate proceeding against him, which is distinct from the criminal charges.
Additionally, the SEC’s allegation that Binance should have registered for various trading activities under securities law will continue to be pursued.
Partial Victory for Binance
However, the SEC did not achieve complete success and failed to prevail on some of the charges. Judge Jackson decided to dismiss the claims related to the secondary market sales of BNB and all sales associated with the stablecoin Binance USD (BUSD).
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