​Court refuses to freeze assets of Binance.US at SEC request

What’s new? The judge in the case of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against the Binance cryptocurrency exchange ordered the parties to try to reach an agreement to protect the platform’s assets in the United States and to allow the exchange to continue operating as normal without a temporary freeze of funds. In addition, Binance will have to provide a list of its business expenses. On June 13 reporter Katie Buehler reported this on Twitter.

UPDATE: The judge ordered Binance & the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to try to reach an agreement to secure the U.S. assets but allow Binance to continue operating as usual, which the company said a freeze wouldn’t allow. Binance must file a list of business expenses. https://t.co/jJUrDybaIH — Katie Buehler (@bykatiebuehler) June 13, 2023

What events preceded it? The decision by a federal judge of the District of Columbia came as part of the SEC’s request to freeze Binance.US funds pending a lawsuit alleging the cryptocurrency exchange violated securities laws. Binance called the Commission’s request “draconian and unduly burdensome” and asked the court to deny the motion.

Representatives of Binance.US added that the restraining order would lead to the closure of the exchange’s subsidiary, BAM Trading. They explained that the SEC’s request would harm BAM’s customers, as well as effectively put the firm out of business and deprive it of the ability to defend itself in court.

A total of 13 charges were filed by the SEC against Binance, Binance.US, and personally the head of the companies, Changpeng Zhao. According to the lawsuit, the platform failed to register as an exchange and allowed US customers to trade cryptocurrencies, which the Commission considers securities. In addition, the regulator accused Zhao of having access to Binance.US customer funds. The SEC alleges that the businessman transferred $13 billion of Binance funds through a private company called Merit Peak.

For more details on the aftermath of the SEC’s attack on Binance, Coinbase, and altcoins read GetBlock Magazine’s special feature.