Summary of the Article
- Crypto exchanges based in the US may have listed multiple tokens deemed by the SEC to be unregistered securities.
- According to a Wall Street Journal report, 76 such digital tokens that trade, or have been traded, in the US have so far been identified by the SEC and US courts.
- Regulators in the US have been particularly active in cracking down on the crypto industry this year.
US Crypto Exchanges Listing Unregistered Securities
Crypto exchanges based in the US may have listed multiple tokens deemed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to be unregistered securities, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The so-called unregistered securities are, in reality, digital tokens that the SEC does not consider to be commodities under the regulatory framework that currently exists in the US. According to the Wall Street Journal report, 76 such digital tokens that trade, or have been traded, in the US have so far been identified by the SEC and US courts. Among these is Ripple’s XRP token which is one of best-known and most valuable. As a result of their classification all 76 of these tokens are considered to have been distributed and sold illegally to public investors, in direct violation of investor-protection laws.
Unregistered Tokens Still Trade on Major Exchanges
The Wall Street Journal reported that there are now 16 tokens deemed to be securities still trading on one or more major crypto exchanges registered with U.S regulators after several other tokens were delisted from those same exchanges following SEC actions. Of all 76 security tokens mentioned earlier 37 – almost half – were involved with alleged fraud leading up their delisting from major U.S crypto exchanges like Coinbase and Kraken.
SEC Seeking Greater Influence Over Crypto Industry
It appears clear that while various other regulatory agencies within U.S generally agree upon taking a tougher stance on crypto this classification of many digital assets as securities could also potentially be part of an effort on behalf of SEC itself seeking greater influence over cryptocurrency industry as whole as current rules grant it authority only for regulating securities but not commodities like Bitcoin which fall under jurisdiction of Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
“Operation Choke Point 2.0” Continues
Regulators within United States seem particularly active when it comes to crackdowns against cryptocurrency related firms this year thus leading some members from industry itself referring this period as “Operation Choke Point 2.0” with notable developments being Wells notice served towards Coinbase by SEC and lawsuit filed against Binance & its CEO Changpeng Zhao by CFTC both occurring throughout 2021 alone .
< h2 > Conclusion It is apparent that authorities across United States continues actively seek ways for tightening grip around Cryptocurrency industry , since it has become increasingly popular within mainstream audience during past few years . Whether new regulations will eventually take effect or not remains unclear however future certainly looks interesting when it comes down discussion regarding crypto regulation .