Crypto Exchange Binance Files Petition Against SEC

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has filed a petition for a protective order against the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Reuters is reporting.

The motion seeks to limit the actions of the SEC. Binance claims that the regulator’s requests for information were “excessive” and “unreasonably burdensome.”

In a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court of Colombia, BAM Trading, the operating company of Binance.US, and BAM Management said the group had already provided sufficient information to the regulator.

SEC lawsuit against Binance

The SEC said that Binance violated US laws by operating as an unregistered securities exchange. Almost simultaneously, it made similar accusations against another of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, Coinbase.

Moreover, Binance and its CEO Changpeng Zhao have faced 13 allegations. In particular, the regulator alleges that they mixed billions of dollars worth of investors’ assets and sent them to a third-party firm also owned by Zhao. The SEC also claims that the company artificially inflated trading volumes, could not restrict the access of US clients to its platform, and misled investors.

Representatives of the crypto exchange said that they always tried to cooperate with the regulator and settle all problems through negotiations. Therefore, Binance is disappointed that the SEC decided to act unilaterally and start litigation instead of a constructive process.

Counterclaim Binance

After a series of allegations from the SEC, Binance filed a counterclaim against the regulator. According to representatives of the crypto platform, the SEC was engaged in defamation, making statements about the management of client funds.

Read also: How Binance Is Trying to Outwit EU Regulators and Break into the UK Market

However, D.C. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson decided that the court should not intervene from the SEC press release, which talked about mixing client money and using offshore companies. Also, the court does not believe that this Binance lawsuit will not affect the proceedings with the SEC.