Kraken Rebuts SEC Claims, Argues Digital Assets Are Not Securities: Law Decoded
Crypto exchange Kraken has responded to a complaint by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission that it violated federal securities laws.
In a legal filing on September 12, the crypto exchange rejected the SEC's accusations that the regulator said the assets did not meet the legal definition of securities.
Kraken claims it does not violate “Sections 5, 15(a) and 17A of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934” because the assets in question “are not securities or investment contracts.”
The assets mentioned in the SEC lawsuits include Solana's SOL (SOL), Cardano's ADA (ADA), Algorand's ALGO (ALGO), Cosmos' ATOM (ATOM), Filecoin (FIL), Polygon's MATIC (MATIC) and five others.
Brazil lifts ban on Starlink and X related bank accounts after $3 million fine
On September 13, the Brazilian Supreme Court lifted the ban on bank accounts linked to Elon Musk's Starlink and social media platform X after the money was transferred to the National Treasury.
The nearly $3.3 million 18.35 Brazilian reals is related to a legal dispute related to the social media platform's failure to comply with court orders.
Brazil's Supreme Court has ordered X to block accounts accused of spreading misinformation and hate speech, and has previously said its content threatens democracy.
On September 12, the Office of the Attorney General of Brazil argued that X's ban does not violate the right to free speech and that the charges against X's ban do not have legal grounds.
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The UK government has introduced a bill to clarify the legal status of crypto
On September 11, the UK government introduced legislation to assess whether Bitcoin (BTC) and other cryptocurrencies can be considered “personal property”.
The Government has announced that the Property Bill will clarify the legal status of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), cryptocurrencies and carbon credits.
Labor MP and Secretary of State Heidi Alexander said the new law would help “bring clarity to complex property issues”.
The UK government said the proposed legislation would provide “legal protection” to owners and companies when “digital assets are disputed or part of a settlement”.
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Coinbase's “Stand With Crypto” NFT creates legal defense fund
On September 13, Coinbase-led political advocacy group Stand With Crypto announced the launch of a legal defense fund for NFT projects.
The “Inventor Legal Defense Fund” is a $6 million fund backed by venture capital firm a16z and NFT marketplace OpenSea.
According to the Stand Wise Crypto website, the SEC's issuance of the Wells Notice to OpenSea and other “artists and innovators” has raised legal concerns for those building on blockchain technology.
Alongside the action against OpenSea, the SEC brought legal action against crypto exchanges Coinbase, Kraken and Binance for allegedly violating securities laws.
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