The ongoing legal battle between the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Ripple, a blockchain company, has been widely publicized. Amidst this backdrop, a commissioner within the SEC has spoken out against the agency's tactics in the cryptocurrency sector, characterizing them as a territorial struggle.
Hester Peirce, who has gained recognition for her vocal criticism of the regulator, has accused the SEC of engaging in "regulation by ambiguity" and "jurisdictional maximalization." This includes the launch of cases like the one against Ripple, which may be aimed at expanding the SEC's authority. These allegations were reported by Wired on April 26.
Enforcing instead of guiding
As per the report, Peirce commented that "one way to plant a flag is to bring enforcement action. It says: This is our space." However, she also highlighted a major issue with this approach, namely that the SEC has not provided sufficient guidance for cryptocurrency firms to ensure compliance. This lack of guidance leaves these firms in a state of uncertainty and confusion.
âWe havenât done our job as a regulator. We have not provided a road to compliance. (âŠ) [Businesses and consumers] have to be able to know whether theyâre dealing with a security or not because when they donât know, they canât move forwardâit paralyzes them.â
Peirce further contends that the SEC's actions are detrimental to the United States' ambitions of becoming a hub for technological innovation in the financial sector. By driving companies away with unclear and inconsistent regulation, the country is missing out on potential opportunities for experimentation and growth.
"It's disheartening because it reveals the inability of regulators to adapt to new technologies and asset classes," Peirce lamented. "We are demonstrating an inability to provide any room for experimentation."
Legal developments
Meanwhile, John E. Deaton, a legal expert who is an amicus curiae for Ripple, revealed some details of his Amicus Brief. In it, he challenged the SEC to provide evidence of any other situation that is comparable to what the agency is attempting to establish in the ongoing Ripple case.
John E Deaton@JohnEDeaton1
Deaton emphasized that the nature of an asset does not change simply because it is offered and sold as an investment contract or security. For example, oranges remain oranges, and XRP remains digital code.
Meanwhile, the XRP community is eagerly awaiting news regarding a Zoom hearing on class certification for a class-action lawsuit filed against Ripple in 2020 in a California court. In this lawsuit, Ripple is accused of selling the XRP token as an unregistered security, as stated by defense attorney James K. Filan.
As of April 27, XRP is trading at a price of $0.46, with a 2.22% decrease on the day following a sharp drop from $0.48 to $0.44. However, the cryptocurrency seems to be recovering and attempting to reverse its losses of 6.05% in the last week and 4.01% over the past month, according to the latest data.
#xrp #SEC #RIPPLE #crypto2023 #lawsuit Source: finbold
image Source: Photo by Traxer on Unsplash
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Disclaimer
The views and opinions expressed by the author, or any people mentioned in this article, are for informational purposes only, and they do not constitute financial, investment, or other advice. Investing in or trading crypto assets comes with a risk of financial loss.