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Binance and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) are jointly calling for a 60-day pause in their ongoing legal battle.
The exchange and the regulator have requested said in a court filing that the new crypto tasks force, established by SEC Chairman Mark Uyeda and headed by SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, could influence the litigation and “facilitate the potential resolution of this case.”
“We are grateful to Interim Chairman Uyeda for his thoughtful approach to ensuring digital assets receive the appropriate legislative and regulatory focus in this new, golden era of blockchain,” said a Binance spokesperson.
“The SEC’s case has always been without merit and we are eager to put this behind us and to continue our focus on keeping Binance the most secure, licensed and trusted exchange in the world.”
The SEC’s lawsuit against Binance alleged 13 separate violations, on the basis that cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin should be classified as securities.
While Binance settled with the Department of Justice to the tune of $4.3 billion in November 2023 over allegations of money laundering and sanctions violations, as well as four months of jailtime for Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, the SEC did not participate in the settlement and pressed forward with its case.
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The 60-day ceasefire between the SEC and Binance signals a potential softening of the regulator's stance and a stark contrast from the SEC’s previous aggressive enforcement under former chairman Gary Gensler.
President Donald Trump's appointed Uyeda as the acting chair last month. Before his appointment as an SEC commissioner in June 2022, Uyeda built a career in public service and securities regulation. He served on the Senate Banking Committee under former U.S. Senator Pat Toomey and provided strategic counsel to California’s securities regulator during Arnold Schwarzenegger’s governorship.
BlockheadHowever, speaking at a Federalist Society panel, Peirce said it was a "little premature" for the SEC to start setting a crypto regulator agenda without a Senate-confirmed chair.
“Acting Chairman Uyeda is doing a great job, and the agenda is working — we haven’t stopped working,” said Peirce.
Former SEC Commissioner Paul Atkins was nominated by Trump in December to take on the role of the agency's permanent chair. Uyeda, the SEC's crypto task force, which Peirce heads up.
“We assume that sometime soon, if Chairman Atkins is confirmed as chairman, he’ll come in and want to set his agenda,” Peirce added, stating that the SEC was "trying to figure out" a path for digital asset rulemaking.
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