© Reuters Kraken Pays $30M Penalty, Shuts Down Participation Service in SEC Settlement, Crypto Mom Reacts
- Kraken has agreed to pay $30 million in penalties and shut down its crypto-staking services as part of a settlement with the SEC.
- The crypto community has been outraged by the report, calling out Gary Gensler for his anti-crypto agenda.
- The mother of cryptocurrency, Commissioner Hester Pierce, has criticized the SEC for its “lazy and patronizing” approach to cryptocurrency regulation.
Kraken, a US-based cryptocurrency exchange, has been hit with $30 million in fines and has agreed to shut down its cryptocurrency staking program as part of a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for offering non-public securities. registered.
Kraken Reaches a Settlement with the SEC
In a follow-up to the SEC’s investigation of Kraken, the regulator fined the cryptocurrency exchange $30 million in repayment, pre-trial interest and civil penalties.
The SEC announced in a press release that as part of the settlement, Kraken would shut down its cryptocurrency staking program that it had been offering to its clients since 2019.
The news follows concerns raised by Coinbase CEO Brain Armstrong about the regulator’s plans to ban cryptocurrency staking for retail merchants in the United States. SEC Chairman Gary Gensler had previously said the holdings could be classified as securities.
Right after the announcement, Gensler tweeted:
.tweet-container,.twitter-tweet.twitter-tweet-rendered,blockquote.twitter-tweet{min-height:261px}.tweet-container{position:relative}blockquote.twitter-tweet{display:flex;max-width :550px;top margin:10px;bottom margin:10px}blockquote.twitter-tweet p{font:20px -apple-system,BlinkMacSystemFont,”Segoe UI”,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif}.tweet-container div :primer child{ position:absolute!Important}.tweet-container div:last-child{position:relative!Important}
Today @SECGov charged Kraken with unregistered offering and selling of securities through its gambling as a service program. Whether through betting as a service, lending, or other means, crypto intermediaries must provide appropriate disclosures and safeguards. required by our laws.
— Gary Gensler (@GaryGensler) February 9, 2023
Crypto Community calls for anti-crypto agenda
News of the deal has sparked outrage in the crypto community, which drew attention to Gensler’s apparent contempt for cryptocurrencies. Popular investor and Cinneamhain Ventures partner Adam Cochran has denounced Genler’s anti-crypto agenda, tweeting:
2/2Gensler is not a regulator. He is an agent of an anti-cryptocurrency agenda, who only intends to wield his power as a bludgeon for those he disagrees with. So the big question is, why didn’t FTX get this treatment? Whose pocket is he in? ?
— Adam Cochran (adamscochran.eth) (@adamscochran) February 9, 2023
Ryan Sean Adams, the founder of the Bankless program, noted that the SEC could have taken other steps instead of charging Kraken. US Congressman Tom Emmer agrees, saying Genler’s “purgatory strategy” will hurt ordinary Americans “the most.”
To be clear, participation allows more people to participate in building the next generation of the Internet. https://t.co/8YlSuBVj6L
— Tom Emmer (@GOPMajorityWhip) February 9, 2023
Kraken Down, Commissioner Hester Pierce Criticizes the SEC
Cryptocurrency users are not the only ones who disagree with the SEC’s decision. The regulator’s commissioner, Hester Pierce, said regulation by enforcement “is not an efficient or fair way to regulate.”
According to Pierce, the SEC has remained “lazy and paternalistic” toward regulating cryptocurrencies. While the regulator counts the deal as a win for investors, it disagrees and “therefore dissents.”
In the statement sharing her thoughts on the situation, Commissioner Pierce explained that the SEC may have started a “public process to develop a workable registration process that provides valuable information to investors.”
In the reverse
- Not all of the big players in the crypto industry are against Gensler’s decision, with Michael Saylor being one of the most prominent figures who agrees.
- The permabull agreed with Gensler’s analysis that retail investors “lose control” of their tokens if they are held with staking services.
why should you care
The agreement may mean that the SEC could go after other exchanges and platforms that offer crypto betting services, as it considers them securities.
Read more about the Kraken probe below:
SEC Strengthens Enforcement and Investigates Kraken for Violation of Securities Laws
The concerns of the CEO of Coinbase (NASDAQ:) are covered in:
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong Says SEC Ban On Crypto Staking “Would Be A Terrible Road For The US”
See original on DailyCoin