YEREVAN (CoinChapter.com) — The US Securities and Trade Fee (SEC) has filed a swimsuit towards Consensys, the guardian firm of MetaMask. The criticism, filed on June 28, alleges that the corporate has been working as an unregistered dealer and providing unregistered securities via MetaMask Swaps since 2020.
SEC Accuses Consensys of $250M Unregistered Crypto Transactions
The swimsuit filed by the SEC claims Consensys has collected over $250 million in charges from brokering crypto transactions and offering staking companies with out correct registration. The regulator argues these actions disadvantaged buyers of important protections. The SEC seeks a everlasting injunction, civil penalties, and different equitable aid towards Consensys for these alleged violations.
The criticism states that since January 2023, Consensys has supplied unregistered securities via MetaMask Staking.
The US Securities and Trade Fee (SEC) asserts that Consensys has been concerned within the sale of securities for Lido and Rocket Pool, performing as an underwriter. The regulator claims that Consensys performed a major position of their distribution.
“Consensys has offered and sold tens of thousands of securities for two issuers: Lido and Rocket Pool. By this conduct, Consensys acts as an underwriter of those securities and participates in the key points of their distribution,”
reads the submitting.
In response, Consensys argues that the SEC lacks the authority to control software program interfaces like MetaMask. The corporate had beforehand sued the SEC in April after receiving a Wells discover, difficult the potential classification of Ether (ETH) and associated staking companies as securities.
“The SEC has been pursuing an anti-crypto agenda led by enforcement actions. This is just the latest example of its effort to redefine well-established legal standards and expand the SEC’s jurisdiction via lawsuit,”
Consensys acknowledged.
The SEC’s criticism classifies staking applications supplied by Lido and Rocket Pool as funding contracts. It claims that buyers are inserting Ether into a typical enterprise with an expectation of income. The SEC argues that neither Lido nor Rocket Pool has filed a registration assertion, making these staking applications unregistered securities.
SEC Tightens Grip on Crypto Staking with Kraken and Coinbase Circumstances
This lawsuit is a part of the SEC’s efforts to control staking companies. In February, Kraken settled with the SEC for $30 million and closed its staking companies for U.S. shoppers.
Coinbase can also be disputing the SEC’s claims concerning its staking companies in courtroom.
Staking includes locking cryptocurrencies in a digital pockets to assist a blockchain community’s safety and operations. Validators verify transactions and create new blocks primarily based on their staked quantity, incomes rewards in return. The SEC argues these rewards ought to be regulated as securities.