In a recent turn of events, Binance US, the American division of the renowned digital asset exchange, Binance, lodged a request to curb the extent of discovery pursued by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The SEC had previously initiated a lawsuit accusing Binance US of improper registration and a questionable blending of user assets. Consequences of this lawsuit eventually culminated in a consent order after the financial overseer moved to freeze assets tied to Binance’s entities, BAM Trading Services, and BAM Management US Holdings.
Some industry pundits perceive this consent order as excessively taxing for the firm, as it does not strip the SEC of its right to a “limited expedited discovery” about the store and availability of assets. In a recent motion, Binance US debates that the SEC has burst the confines of the consent agreement, embarking on further probes into the company’s operations.
This progressive engagement with the firm portrays a potentially protracted regulatory clash with Binance US. The firm argues that for the past month and a half, the SEC has relentlessly sought every document in Binance US’s possession related to customer assets.
The crux of Binance’s claim pivots around the regulator’s failure to provide tangible evidence of mishandling user assets after multiple years of scrutiny. As the SEC’s requests multiply, Binance US insists on its “good faith” efforts to supply hundreds of relevant documents, inclusive of testimonies from staff members privy to user asset issues.
Adding to the controversy, Binance US alleges that the commission is demanding exhaustive depositions from higher-level executives, including its CEO and CFO, about extensive user asset communications. The firm suggests that these executives have minimal exposure to data on customer assets, despite this being the focal point of the lawsuit.
In response, the exchange puts forth an alternative solution, recommending staff members possessing primary knowledge of user assets for deposition with the SEC, asserting that this could be a crucial advancement to the investigations.
Finally, Binance voices its disapproval of the SEC’s approach, critiquing it as overreaching and inappropriate in relation to the core investigation subject. This transformative journey through the web of regulations continues to provoke thought around the ongoing interactions between digital asset exchanges and financial regulators.
Source: Cryptonews
