SEC demanded to block assets of the U.S. unit of Binance

SEC Demands Blocking of US Binance Assets
SEC demanded to block assets of the U.S. unit of Binance
The exchange said that the regulator's demand is unreasonable and had nothing to do with concern for users' funds, which the SEC said was the reason for the petition

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a court motion to block the assets of the U.S. unit of Binance - BAM Trading (Binance.US). The regulator cited the reason for this as concern for the safety of the exchange users' assets.

Earlier, the SEC filed a lawsuit against Binance and Zhao for violating securities trading rules. The regulator's 13 charges include operating unregistered exchanges, misrepresenting control and oversight on Binance.US, and engaging in unregistered securities offerings and sales. Zhao is also accused of misusing customer money.

The agency has now requested an immediate asset freeze in order to safeguard user funds. The emergency restraining order is necessary to "prevent the dissipation of available assets before any judgment, given the defendants' years of illegal activity and their disregard for United States laws," the document said.

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For its part, Binance.US said on its Twitter page that users' assets remain safe and the platform continues to operate as usual.

According to the exchange, the demand for an injunction is unreasonable, the SEC thus wants to gain an advantage in a lawsuit, rather than genuinely concerned about the safety of customer assets. Despite years of experience, SEC officials have not previously expressed concerns about the issue, Binance said in a statement.

Changpeng Zhao stressed that the SEC's demand only concerns Binance.US, not Binance.com. User assets, he said, will not be affected.

SEC Demands Blocking of US Binance Assets

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