Bittrex Global CEO Oliver Linch has described an SEC lawsuit as a mistake, after the regulator charged both it and former partner Bittrex Inc with operating an unregistered securities exchange in the US. Shuttering of Washington State-based Bittrex doesn’t affect his own Switzerland-based exchange’s operations globally, Linch said. Both exchanges should have registered because together they brought together security orders of multiple purchasers, the regulator has said. Any regulatory confusion in the US was up to Congress to sort out, Linch repeated, suggesting it is important regulators create bespoke regulatory frameworks for cryptocurrencies.
SEC claims breaches at exchanges controlled by Bittrex founder
The US Securities and Exchange Commission is set to sue William Shihara, co-founder of the cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex, according to reports. The regulator plans to launch action against Martinelli Pay and Control Finance, companies that were controlled by Shihara prior to the foundation of Bittrex. William Shihara will fight back against the allegations, arguing that the suits are “entirely without merit”. A spokesperson from Bittrex declined to comment on the issue. The regulator has been cracking down on securities fraud relating to cryptocurrencies in recent months, announcing them publicly in its efforts to regulate the unregistered exchanges that have sprung up across the US over the last year.
[h/t Sandali Handagama]