Kraken crypto exchange fights back against SEC’s lawsuit

Kraken lawmakers argued against SEC’s charges and provided facts to dismiss the suit.

Kraken is an averagely popular American crypto exchange. This crypto company was the first to get listed on Bloomberg Terminal. In Jan 2023, Kraken was sued by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for its crypto-staking services. Later this company settled the case with a $30 million fine as well as terminated its crypto staking services for American customers. 

In Nov 2023, The US SEC filed a suit against Kraken and alleged that Kraken did not register as a broker, clearinghouse, or exchange and also accused the company of mixing customer and corporate funds. 

In the latest, Kraken filed a motion in the court against SEC’s suit to dismiss SEC’s charges. 

According to Kraken, all the crypto assets trading on the Kraken platform should be treated as commodity assets, not security. 

Furthermore, Kraken argued that none of the listed crypto assets are deemed as security tokens by the SEC and also Howey Test is not a sufficient tool to identify the exact nature of cryptocurrencies. 

Kraken vs Binance

Kraken & Binance are known as the two biggest rivals against each other. Kraken executives remain ready to criticize the Binance crypto exchange.

Just a few months back, Kraken’s Jesse Powel supported the SEC body for the lawsuit action against Binance and called the move the best decision against illegal activities. Indirectly he said that Binance provided crypto services illegally in the US & this was the reason behind multiple enforcement actions.

Now all the major crypto exchanges Kraken, Binance, & Coinbase are under a single umbrella to object SEC’s blind enforcement actions.

Read also: Nigeria bans Binance & other major crypto companies