A snowstorm in the region has caused the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance to postpone their previously scheduled court hearing.
The U.S. securities regulator filed suit against Binance on June 5, 2023, alleging violations such as illegal operations within the United States and consumer deception.
Additionally, Binance faced charges of violating securities law and disregarding Know-Your-Customers regulations. In addition to other cryptocurrencies trading on Binance, the markets regulator designated Cardano (ADA), Polygon (MATIC), and Solana (SOL) as unregistered securities.
Since then, the case has been prosecuted in court, with a hearing slated for January 19. Nonetheless, the adverse snowstorm conditions in the United States have been so severe as to necessitate the courtroom’s closure on Friday.
Interestingly, Binance’s former CEO Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao, representing the United States, has vehemently pursued dismissing this lawsuit. They argued that the SEC failed to plausibly allege that any token, BNB vault, or straightforward earn is security, that the claim regarding the BNB offering is time-barred, and that the SEC’s arguments unlawfully extend securities laws to foreign jurisdictions.
The U.S. division of the leading cryptocurrency exchange subsequently submitted a second motion to the SEC to dismiss the litigation. David Luger, Sheehan H. Band, Levi Giovanetto, Daniel J. Davis, and Christian Kemnitz were all recruited to the legal team in anticipation of the Binance hearing around this time.
“The SEC was on the sidelines for good reason—unlike the CFTC, the SEC lacks statutory authority over exchange sales of crypto assets,” according to a filing from Binance in December.
There are several parallels between this Binance hearing and that of Coinbase. Following months of requesting that the SEC establish a clear regulatory framework for the cryptocurrency industry in the United States, Coinbase emphasized that the regulator needs to have the authority to regulate cryptocurrencies.