Paul Grewal, Coinbase’s chief legal officer, and Stuart Alderoty, Ripple’s chief trading officer, criticized the SEC for using the term “cryptoassets.” They say the term is ambiguous and has no legal basis in any U.S. law or regulation.
The criticism comes as SEC Chairman Gary Gensler and the five commissioners are scheduled to appear before the House Financial Services Committee, the first appearance by the full committee since 2019.
On his Twitter account, Grewal noted that the SEC has taken a rather incongruous approach to classifying tokens as securities. He said this during a congressional hearing where Rep. Ritchie Torres also expressed similar sentiments by pointing out that the term “cryptoasset” is not well defined in legal systems.
Alderoty supported Grewal’s position, noting that the term has been problematic for the SEC in the past, particularly after the agency admitted to using it misleadingly in a complaint against Binance. He said such inconsistencies erode the SEC’s credibility in court.
As the SEC faces pressure over its regulatory approach, some of the most vocal critics have been lawmakers like House Majority Leader Tom Emmer. In upcoming testimony, Gensler could be asked about more than just cryptocurrency regulation, but also the SEC’s hiring malfeasance case.
This growing debate points to a significant event in the future of cryptocurrency regulation in the United States.
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