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- Ripple CEO Garlinghouse has called SEC Chair Gensler to stop operating like the absolute ruler in a free market.
- XRP price has rallied over 42 percent in the past month to reach $0.58 despite the ongoing Ripple vs SEC lawsuit.
Earlier this week, the Chairman of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Gary Gensler, appeared for a hearing with the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government. During the hearing, Gensler requested a whopping $2.4 billion to facilitate the commission’s work in enforcing financial securities regulations. When asked about the commission’s take on the cryptocurrency market, Gensler insisted that most crypto assets are unregulated securities.
As a result, Gensler stated that crypto-related companies, especially centralized exchanges, need to register for securities listing. Furthermore, the SEC Chair reiterated that existing securities laws cover the crypto market, and digital asset exchanges must register under these laws. Gensler stated.
Crypto tokens—without prejudging any one of them—you could look at nearly most of them, and you could find a group of entrepreneurs with a Twitter site, with a website, with individuals, and I can bet that most of you are not visited by decentralized, non-existent management.
The SEC chair has, however, been slammed for hurting the same people that the commission is entitled to protect. Moreover, the crypto market is global, and other jurisdictions like Hong Kong, Russia, El Salvador, and the Central African Republic, among others, have tremendously endorsed the industry to coexist with the local currency and markets.
As Chair of @SECGov, I have one goal with regard to the crypto markets: to ensure that investors and the markets receive all the protections that they would in any other securities market. How?
Read my op-ed in @thehill:
— Gary Gensler (@GaryGensler) March 9, 2023
Ripple Labs’ CEO Slums Gensler
To remind you, Ripple was charged by the former SEC’s administration for selling XRP tokens to the public and raising about $1.3 billion. According to the SEC’s lawsuit against Ripple, XRP is unregistered security under the Howey test. However, Ripple and its legal team have argued the opposite, insisting that XRP is globally traded as a digital currency and can survive independently without help from Ripple.
Meanwhile, the final say has been left with the United States Judge Analisa Torres, who is expected to issue a Judgement ruling or the case proceeds with a trial. With Ripple having spent over $100 million in legal fees to fight the SEC, the crypto market industry understands what is at stake if the company loses. Moreover, the SEC will be motivated to charge every other crypto project in a similar manner.
As a result, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has called on Gensler to stop operating like the absolute ruler in a free market. Garlinghouse noted.
When you behave like an autocrat running a $2.2B bloated agency, why would you ever want to provide clarity about what’s “in or out”? Without clear jurisdiction, ambiguity masquerades as power.
Notably, Garlinghouse has called on the elected United States officials to relook at the actions of Gensler.
For the Chair of the SEC to assert that he dictates what is a security – and not the legislation from which his agency derives its power – is beyond comprehension. It's time for elected officials in the US to take notice. https://t.co/kvat6ixUdS
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) March 30, 2023
