- A US District Judge ordered SEC and Binance.US to meet in the middle and avoid freezing Binance.US customer funds.
- The US SEC accused Binance and its CEO of mishandling customer funds.
- District Judge Amy Berman Jackson claims shutting down Binance.US would significantly affect the crypto market.
The United States Security and Exchange Commission (US SEC) and the US branch of crypto exchange, Binance.US, have been ordered by the US District Judge Amy Berman Jackson to work out their differences and come to an agreement that would prevent the freezing of all assets on the crypto exchange.
On June 14, Bloomberg reported that the District Judge referred both the SeC and Binance.US to a magistrate judge, recommending that the two organizations focus on how to solve their legal battles and protect the customer funds without closing the crypto exchange.
Judge Amy affirmed that she would not give a final verdict on SEC’s motion for a temporary restraining order unless the ongoing matter between the two organizations was solved and they had both agreed.
On June 13, Judge Jackson stated that shutting down Binance.US would significantly affect the crypto company and the digital assets market. Hence, an agreement deal with the recommended magistrate has been scheduled for June 15.
The US District Court Judge also mentioned that the SEC and the US branch of the Binance crypto exchange were close enough regarding their negotiation deal.
SEC Accuses Binance and Changpeng Zhao “CZ” of Gaining Access to Customer Funds
On June 6, the US SEC filed a temporary restraining order motion against Binance, alleging that the crypto exchange and its CEO, Changpeng Zhao, had access to Binance.US customer funds on the platform.
According to the motion, Binance and other entities owned by Zhao had several accounts with two central banks in the US, namely, Signature Bank and Silvergate Bank. The SEC accused Binance’s CEO of transferring $22 billion in user funds to Medit Peak between April 2019 to April 2023.
Public’s Opinion to SEC and Binace.US legal battle
Before the District Judge announced her decision concerning US SEC and Binance.US, an ex-SEC enforcement attorney, John Read Stark, shared his opinion on the “dueling consent orders” between both organizations.
“There is a lot of conflict between what each party argues,” Stark says.
The crypto community has been on edge while the United States Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) battles it out with Binance and Coinbase in a series of lawsuits and allegations. The freezing of all crypto assets on Binance.US would prove terminal to the crypto industry, which is why the US District Judge has suggested a compromise for the SEC and Binance, agreeing that both organizations are not that far apart when it comes to protecting the customers’ billions of dollars on the crypto exchange’s platform.
Conclusion
District Judge Amy Berman Jackson has concluded that the two warring parties find common ground and reach an agreement before freezing Binance.US’s assets, which could weaken the crypto market.