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Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) described the U.S. Security and Exchange Commission lawsuit against his firm as an attack on the entire crypto industry.
On June 5, the SEC filed a lawsuit against Binance, and related entities, alleging federal securities law violations placing American investors at risk, including the firm offering of unregistered security tokens in BNB, ADA, and ALGO, among others.
Binance claims the SEC lawsuit is an overreach
In a June 5 statement, Binance said the SEC’s lawsuit is an “overreach” because it is not a U.S. exchange. The firm said it stands with “digital asset market participants in the U.S.” and is “prepared to fight [the lawsuit] to the full extent of the law.”
Despite its cooperation with the regulator, Binance denied the allegations and expressed disappointment at the SEC’s actions. It said:
“The SEC’s refusal to productively engage with us is just another example of the Commission’s misguided and conscious refusal to provide much-needed clarity and guidance to the digital asset industry.”
Additionally, the U.S. subsidiary of the embattled exchange, Binance.US, labeled the SEC’s lawsuit as “baseless,” describing it as the latest example of the Commision’s regulation-by-enforcement approach towards the crypto industry.
Crypto community backs Binance
Meanwhile, the lawsuit appears to have united the crypto community, with several prominent figures coming forward in support of Binance.
Cardano (ADA) founder Charles Hoskinson said the lawsuit was “the next in a series of steps to implement chokepoint 2.0 in the United States.” Hoskinson noted that this is not a regulatory event but a political, philosophical disagreement about the existence of cryptocurrencies and what they represent.
TRON founder Justin Sun replied to CZ, saying he is “fully aware of your dedication to advancing the cryptocurrency industry, and your abilities and ethics are beyond reproach.”