Ripple CEO criticizes SEC for ‘ambiguous’ regulation of cryptocurrencies

Ripple Labs CEO Brad Garlinghouse called the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) actions against crypto companies in the country “inconsistent.”

Brad Garlinghouse recalled the ongoing legal battle between the regulator and Ripple, in which the SEC accuses the company of selling unregistered securities. At the same time, as the CEO of Ripple emphasized, this did not prevent the regulator from approving the Coinbase site’s entry into the stock exchange, despite the support for trading with XRP.

A packed day at @CollisionHQ – starting w/ @ShenLucinda covering all things crypto winter, culture, hiring and Ripple’s new Toronto Eng Hub, and ending w/ @glichfield getting into the weeds on how the crypto industry and regulators can work together on sensible, clear policies. pic.twitter.com/IVMnJ0oS5o

— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) June 23, 2022

“The SEC has a very interesting position. They sued us, saying that XRP is a security and always has been. At the same time, the regulator approved Coinbase’s listing on the stock exchange, although the platform never had a broker-dealer license. I see some contradictions here. Instead of doing a massive and complex job of defining clear rules and regulations for the regulation of crypto companies, the SEC regulates the market through courts and penalties. I think this is stifling innovation in the US,” Garlinghouse said at the Collision conference in Toronto.

Also, the CEO of Ripple Labs once again emphasized that he does not consider the cryptocurrency industry to be the “Wild West”. He noted that cryptocurrencies are indeed a very volatile asset class, but the regulator should not prohibit investment in it because of volatility alone.

Earlier, Ripple lawyer Stuart Alderoty said that the SEC is deliberately suppressing cryptocurrency innovation, using the case against Ripple to do this.