The crypto community has recently been on edge as a result of statements by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). After the US SEC claimed that AMP was a security last month, Binance.US will delist the token “out of an abundance of caution.”
In response to the Binance.US announcement, AMP fell on Monday. In January 2021, Binance.US made a similar move with XRP, following the case between the SEC and Ripple.
Binance.US plans to delist AMP in response to SEC’s security tag
Binance.US announced Monday that it would be shutting down Amp (AMP) deposits and removing the AMP/USD trading pair on August 15, citing the coin’s appearance in a legal complaint from the US SEC.
In July, the federal regulator filed a complaint against a former Coinbase product manager and two individuals, alleging that AMP and eight other cryptocurrencies were “crypto asset securities” covered by the SEC.
Out of an abundance of caution, we have decided to delist the AMP token from Binance.US effective August 15, 2022. While trading of AMP may resume at some point in the future on the Binance.US platform, we are taking this step now until more clarity exists around the classification of AMP.
Binance.US
Monday, AMP is down 6.59 percent. On Sunday, AMP fell 1.11%, bringing it to $0.0085. Following an 11.65% drop from July, the decline continues on Monday with a 6.59% loss. The bulls were in control as the price of AMP rose to a morning high of $0.0092 before reversing. When it came up short of the First Major Resistance Level at $0.00937, the price fell to a low of $0.0081.
The AMP cryptocurrency fell below the first major support level at $0.00887 and the second major support level at $0.00863. AMP increased in price after finding support at the Third Major Support Level at $0.00813. However, on Monday, August, the price decreased in response to the SEC labeling AMP and eight other cryptos as securities. This caused a decline in prices across the board for cryptocurrencies.
We believe that, in some circumstances, delisting an asset best protects our community from undue risk […] We operate in a rapidly evolving industry and our listing and delisting processes are designed to be responsive to market and regulatory developments.
Binance.US
In the SEC complaint, AMP is the only cryptocurrency among the nine mentioned that is currently available for trade on Binance.US. The platform stated that trading of AMP “may resume at a later date,” but provided no timeline.
Suppose the SEC decides to pursue enforcement actions. In that case, the agency may examine any crypto exchanges or organizations that list the token, as well as Powerledger (POWR), Kromatika (KROM), DFX Finance (DFX), Rally (RLY), Rari Governance Token (RGT), DerivaDAO (DDX), LCX and XYO.
Implications of SEC calling crypto coins securities
The SEC’s investigations, labeling of cryptocurrencies, and the Binance.US delisting may set legal precedence and provide the SEC greater power over the cryptocurrency market. Despite the fact that there is no formal crypto regulatory framework or jurisdiction over digital assets, US-based cryptocurrency exchanges like Binance.US and other crypto trading platforms may be required to delist any cryptocurrency that the SEC deems a security.
In response to the SEC v Ripple case, which is still pending since December 2020, Binance.US took similar action in January 2021 by delisting XRP.
The SEC’s claims might have far-reaching consequences in addition to the single case, emphasizing how crucial and pressing it is for regulators to collaborate. “The SEC’s allegations could have broad implications beyond this single case, underscoring how critical and urgent it is that regulators work together,” said Caroline Pham, CFTC commissioner.
On July 21, the SEC filed insider trading charges against a former Coinbase (COIN) product manager and two other people.
The Securities and Exchange Commission’s decision to characterize the nine cryptocurrencies as securities may have far-reaching consequences in the cryptocurrency market. The fact that they will be treated as a stock or a bond implies that they will be regulated. To be able to sell assets to investors in the United States, these tokens’ creators will also have to follow the country’s securities regulations.
Such designations would make running a crypto exchange more expensive and complex. Furthermore, exchanges would face continuous scrutiny by regulators. This could lead to penalties, fines, or prosecutions if criminal authorities get involved.
This might result in future funding from investors fleeing the market due to concerns over increased compliance obligations and regulatory investigation. More consequences will develop as the SEC’s decisions are implemented.
The most important distinction between a security and an investment is how much the token resembles shares issued by a company seeking capital. The SEC employs a legal test from a 1946 US Supreme Court decision to determine this. The SEC may consider an asset as security if investors raise or inject cash intending to benefit from the company’s leadership’s efforts.
In December 2020, the SEC sued Ripple Labs Inc. for allegedly selling XRP securities without registering them as such. The securities regulator said that Ripple was using investor money to fuel its growth by selling XRP, anticipating the currency’s value would rise. The SEC and Ripple are now engaged in a major legal dispute over this case.