Bittrex agrees to settle $24M in SEC lawsuit, doesn’t accept or decline allegations
- Bittrex was charged in April by the SEC for selling unregistered securities.
- Besides Bittrex, Coinbase and Binance are also facing similar charges.
- Although Bittrex agreed to pay the $24 million, it has not mentioned anything to do with accepting or denying the SEC allegations.
The US-based cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex has agreed to settle $24 million with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the lawsuit where the SEC accused the exchange of offering unregistered securities to US investors. The SEC has today confirmed the payment in a tweet.
Today we announced that crypto asset trading platform Bittrex Inc. and its co-founder and former CEO, William Shihara, agreed to settle charges that they operated an unregistered national securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency.
— U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (@SECGov) August 10, 2023
The exchange, however, has not agreed to nor rejected the SEC allegations of offering unregistered securities.
SEC’s allegations against Bittrex
The US SEC had filed a lawsuit against Bittrex and its former CEO, William Shihara, in April for selling unregistered securities. The SEC also claimed that the exchange’s foreign subsidiary, Bittrex Global GmbH, has failed to register as a national securities exchange.
Bittrex is not the only cryptocurrency under siege by the SEC. Binance and Coinbase are also facing similar charges. However, both Binance and Coinbase have vowed to fight till the end. Coinbase, which is a listed public company says that the SEC is contradicted since it knew about the exchanges dealing when the company applied to be listed as a public company.
However, the court is yet to approve the settlement and a Bitterx spokesperson said that they would comment more about the settlement once the court approves the agreement
