Judge Michael Wiles gave short shrift to idea that VGX crypto token may be unregistered security .
Christy Goldsmith RomeroCommissioner United States Commodity Futures Trading CommissionExplore the policy fallout from the 2022 market tragedy, the advance of CBDCs and more.Secure Your SeatChristy Goldsmith RomeroCommissioner United States Commodity Futures Trading CommissionExplore the policy fallout from the 2022 market tragedy, the advance of CBDCs and more.Secure Your SeatChristy Goldsmith RomeroCommissioner United States Commodity Futures Trading CommissionExplore the policy fallout from the 2022 market tragedy, the advance of CBDCs and more.Secure Your SeatChristy Goldsmith RomeroCommissioner United States Commodity Futures Trading CommissionExplore the policy fallout from the 2022 market tragedy, the advance of CBDCs and more.Secure Your Seat
United States Bankruptcy Court Judge Michael Wiles appeared heavily skeptical about an attempt by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to stop a buy by Binance. United States of assets of defunct cryptocurrency lender Voyager Digital at a Thursday court hearing.
The securities regulating authority stated the $1.02 Billion deal should be blocked because Voyager’s crypto token could constitute an unregistered security.
“You come here and tell me … that I should stop everybody in their tracks because you can potentially have an issue,” Wiles stated, addressing counsel for the SEC. “It’s kind of a weird objection.”
Wiles, who is with the Southern District Bankruptcy Court in New York, stated he was ” definitely shocked” at the SEC’s objection, saying it was asking Voyager to prove a negative with little guidance from the regulator.
“I get the feeling that this objection has been made as a kind of cover, so you can say thereafter that we’ll see we raised these issues,” he stated. “You haven’t really, you have done nothing … I need know specifics.”
William Uptegrove, representing the SEC, stated that creditors had not been sufficiently warned of regulatory dangers, but declined to take a definitive position on whether VGX was a security.
Counsel for Voyager informed the court that the deal could see creditors achieving 73 percent recovery, a revision upward thanks to the recently positive tendency cryptocurrency market Court filings show that 97 percent of its customers, representing 98 percent of total claims, had voted in favor of the deal, though it has found less favor with regulators.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has warned it can potentially involve the unlawful sale of unregistered securities, and the Federal Trade Commission stated it was probing Voyager for deceptive marketing, while Texas regulatory authorities stated creditors weren’t properly warned of legal risks.