Crypto.com sues SEC after receiving a Wells notice from the agency
Crypto.com says it is suing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission after receiving a notice that the agency plans to bring an enforcement action against the company.
The crypto trading platform said it decided to sue the agency after receiving what is known as a Wells notice and said the SEC's actions left them "with no other choice."
"Our decision to sue the SEC follows our receipt of a Wells notice from the Commission staff, illustrating that the SEC’s unauthorized and unjust regulation by enforcement campaign continues despite bipartisan indications that the next Administration will take a more constructive and effective approach to advancing crypto in the U.S.," Crypto.com said in a statement on Tuesday.
Crypto.com says its lawsuit asserts that the SEC has overexpanded its jurisdiction while also pushing back on the agency's claim that most cryptocurrencies are securities.
The firm is not the first crypto company to sue the SEC. Consensys sued the SEC in April, partly over how the agency categorized ether as a security. Coinbase has filed multiple lawsuits against the SEC, including for not providing clear rulemaking for digital assets.
The SEC has consistently warned that crypto exchanges must register with the agency. Meanwhile, crypto firms have argued it's not possible to register with the agency, in part because rules were made for more traditional entities that are different from the digital asset industry.
The regulator has also taken legal action against big crypto firms, including Coinbase, Kraken and Binance.
The SEC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
