The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has taken an inconsistent approach to regulating the cryptocurrency industry. This was stated by Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse at Collision conference in Toronto.
A packed day at @CollisionHQ – starting w/ @ShenLucinda covering all things crypto winter, culture, hiring and Ripple’s new Toronto Eng Hub, and ending w/ @glichfield getting into the weeds on how the crypto industry and regulators can work together on sensible, clear policies. pic.twitter.com/IVMnJ0oS5o
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) June 23, 2022
The CEO reminded that in December 2020 the SEC accused Ripple of selling unregistered securities in the form of XRP. In his view, the regulator’s inconsistent action was the approval of Coinbase’s listing on Nasdaq in April 2021, while the bitcoin exchange was trading the token.
«… they allowed Coinbase to go public, even though Coinbase is not a registered broker-dealer. There are some contradictions in that, within the organization the right hand at the SEC doesn’t know what the left hand is doing», — explained Garlinghouse.
After the SEC filed suit against Ripple Coinbase said that it would halt XRP trading for users in all serviced regions. Later the Commission still had concerns about the exchange, but over a different matter—the regulator warned the company of legal action over its Lend crypto-savings accounts.
Back then Garlinghouse supported Coinbase and said that the SEC ‘continues the war against cryptocurrencies’.
During the conference, the head of Ripple noted that the Commission, ‘instead of working on creating clear regulation’, uses a coercive approach. In his words, this ‘has stifled innovation in the United States’.
«I don’t think that [cryptocurrencies] are the Wild West. Cryptocurrencies, certainly, are a volatile asset class […]. All asset classes have volatility, and I don’t believe it’s the regulator’s job to determine how consumers and businesses should access it», — added Garlinghouse.
“I don’t think it’s the wild west at all.” Ripple CEO @bgarlinghouse thinks the SEC isn’t painting crypto in the right light. pic.twitter.com/iO30gVafTn
— Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) June 23, 2022
In September 2021, SEC Chair Gary Gensler compared cryptocurrencies to the ‘Free Banking Era’ from 1837 to 1863. Later he repeated the idea and stated the importance of regulating the industry.
Garlinghouse has not been the first to criticize the SEC. In autumn 2021 he accused the Commission of failing to provide clear legal norms for the industry.
In May 2022, the Ripple CEO said that crypto-industry participants should act in accordance with regulatory expectations and the need for a transparent regulatory framework.
Read ForkLog Bitcoin news on our Telegram — cryptocurrency news, prices and analytics.