Ripple gets support from Blockchain Association in XRP lawsuit against SEC

By Timmy Shen. November 17, 2022. (Forkast)

Fast facts

The Blockchain Association filed its amicus brief on Tuesday, saying: “The SEC’s extremely broad interpretation of the securities laws would have devastating effects on the industry (and even outside the industry).”

The Crypto Council for Innovation (CCI), an alliance of industry leaders, also filed an amicus brief on Tuesday in support of Ripple.

“To date, the SEC has largely chosen enforcement over rulemaking as the way to regulate this evolving ecosystem,” CCI wrote in its filing.

Cryptocurrency-related organizations and firms – Veri DAO, Cryptillian Payment System, Reaper Financial and Paradigm Operations – this week also submitted their briefs that challenged the SEC.

In December 2020, the SEC filed a lawsuit against Ripple and its executives, alleging the sale of XRP constituted an offering of unregistered securities worth over US$1.38 billion.

An amicus brief is typically submitted by an individual or organization that is not a party to a case but intended to influence the court’s decision.

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Crypto lobby groups say they’re fighting ‘unworkable’ crypto reporting language in infrastructure bill

By Michael McSweeney. July 29, 2021. (The Block Crypto).

Crypto-related language said to be contained in a still-in-flux bipartisan infrastructure spending bill has spurred activity lobby groups in Washington, D.C. 

On Thursday, the Blockchain Association derided the proposed spending package as one that “threatens crypto innovation.” As previously reported, one of the bills “pay-fors” is tightened tax reporting requirements for crypto companies, which are estimated to raise some $28 billion to be used to fund infrastructure projects over a period of years.

But the controversy centers around which types of crypto companies would be considered “brokers” under the proposed changes, based on drafted language obtained this week by CoinDesk’s Nik De. The prevailing concern is that miners, decentralized finance startups and others not involved in the actual brokerage of digital assets will be hit with overly heightened compliance burdens. According to a fact sheet reviewed by The Block, the language “[updates] the definition of broker to reflect the realities of how digital assets are acquired and traded.”

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