SEC’s ETH Probe Similar to China’s Bitcoin Ban: Ripple CTO

• The SEC’s dropping of an investigation into Ethereum has left many questions.
• Ripple’s legal chief slammed the agency for its regulation strategy.
• Ripple CTO compared the SEC’s decision to China’s ban/unban on BTC.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s decision to drop its investigation into Ethereum (ETH) has created confusion within the crypto space regarding its approach to  regulation.

While the move propelled ETH prices above $3,400, it has left industry experts and investors puzzled on the future of crypto regulation in the United States.

Stuart Alderoty, the Chief Legal Officer at Ripple, took to X (formerly Twitter) to express that the SEC decision has raised numerous questions for the crypto industry, adding:

“Does this mean the SEC thinks Consensys’ offers and sales of ETH are not securities transactions and/or that ETH itself is not a security? What will Gensler say if now asked? What is the status of MetaMask and staking?”

Meanwhile, Ripple CTO David “JoelKatz” Schwartz responded to his colleague’s X post, comparing the SEC’s probe into Ethereum to China’s on-and-off ban on Bitcoin (BTC). The status of ETH as a security or a commodity remains unclear, and the SEC’s shifting stances have not clarified the situation.

A similar pattern was witnessed in China when in 2021, they banned Bitcoin mining, leading to an exodus of miners and a substantial drop in BTC price. Schwartz remarked, “China used to alternately ban and unban bitcoin just to manipulate the market for their oligarchs,” suggesting that the SEC might be employing similar tactics.

The contentious battle between the SEC and Ripple has been a focal point within the digital asset sector. The fintech firm secured a partial victory in its ongoing fight with the regulator when Judge Analisa Torres confirmed that XRP was not a security when sold to retail investors.