• The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) case against Ripple Labs is still pending a ruling from the judge in charge of the Southern District Court of New York.
• Bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital recently received approval from bankruptcy judge Michael Wiles to sell its assets and transfer its customers to Binance.US.
• According to Paul Grewal, Chief Legal Officer (CLO) at Coinbase, a striking passage in the ruling may provide a winning argument for Ripple based on the “fair notice” defense against the SEC.
SEC’s Case Against Ripple Labs Awaits Ruling
The US Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) case against Ripple Labs continues to await a ruling by the judge in charge of the Southern District Court of New York.
Voyager Digital Approved To Sell Assets
Bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital recently received approval from bankruptcy judge Michael Wiles through a ruling to sell its assets and transfer its customers to Binance.US (even though the Department of Justice vetoed the decision).
Striking Passage In Ruling May Provide Winning Argument For Ripple
In his ruling, Wiles addresses the ambiguous legal situation for the crypto industry with strong words. Paul Grewal, Chief Legal Officer (CLO) at Coinbase, recommended via Twitter that everyone should read the ruling, pointing in particular to a striking passage which states: Regulators themselves cannot seem to agree as to whether cryptocurrencies are commodities that may be subject to regulation by the CFTC, or whether they are securities […] subject to securities laws, or neither, or even on what criteria should be applied in making the decision. This uncertainty has persisted despite the fact that cryptocurrency exchanges have been around for a number of years. According to Jeremy Hogan, an attorney popular in XRP community circles, this wording could be a winning argument based on Ripple’s “fair notice” defense against SEC enforcement actions.
Operation Choke Point
In recent days and weeks, US government’s “Operation Choke Point” against crypto industry has become increasingly apparent – with more pressure likely growing ahead as SEC plans expands enforcement actions beyond 100 entities according XRP community attorney John E Deaton . Fox Business journalist Charles Gasparino also noted similar sentiment via tweet about DoJ’s ‘Operation Choke Point’ style campaign targeting banks doing business with Crypto firms
“Fair Notice” Defense
The fair notice defense stems from Due Process Clause of U.S Constitution requiring criminal statute wording clear enough objectively show what is prohibited -looks like Ripple likely file Voyager Judge’s bankruptcy decision supporting Fair Notice Defense – good see judge put into words problem that Crypto projects face