Binance.US is gearing up for the fight against the US securities regulator.
Binance.US, a leading cryptocurrency exchange in the United States, strengthens its defense against impending legal issues by recruiting George Canellos, a former US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) enforcement co-director.
Canellos, along with three additional legal professionals, now fortify the legal division of Binance.US. The former SEC official, presently associated with the global law firm Milbank LLP, was a significant figure in the SEC's enforcement division for over four years, holding various leadership roles before his departure in 2014.
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The strategic move, reported by Bloomberg on June 12th, highlights the crypto exchange's intent to face allegations raised against it.
John Reed Stark, a former chief of internet enforcement at the SEC, voiced his thoughts on this development via Twitter.
Binance is clearly preparing for a criminal prosecution and continuing to hire the best defense attorneys in the world.
He added that the seriousness of the accusations from SEC and CFTC could lead to a criminal indictment, with potential prison time for those found guilty of any Binance-related offenses.
Binance.US finds itself caught in the crossroad of an SEC lawsuit. The SEC's accusation focuses on the company’s alleged operations as an unregistered exchange, broker, and clearing agency. Similar allegations have also been raised against the international branch of the crypto exchange, Binance, and later Coinbase.
Moreover, the SEC has attempted to implement a temporary restraining order to freeze the assets of Binance.US. Opposing the SEC's attempts, Binance.US strongly disagreed with the regulator’s claims in a court filing on June 12th. In the filing, SEC noted:
If the Court does address the merits of the SEC’s motion, it should deny that motion.
Binance.US further argued that the SEC’s desired outcomes were extreme and unnecessarily restrictive, potentially ceasing all company operations without exception.
The ripples of these allegations have already affected Binance.US’s operations. On June 9th, following the SEC's action, the crypto exchange declared a temporary halt on US dollar deposits and suggested a potential pause on fiat withdrawals starting June 13th. The reason stated was the “extremely aggressive and intimidating tactics” deployed by the SEC.
It's clear that Binance.US is gearing up to challenge regulatory scrutiny, and the unfolding of these events will mark a significant chapter in US crypto-regulatory history.
