Ripple’s General Counsel: SEC’s ‘Regulation by Enforcement’ Hurts Crypto Space

If the US Congress and regulators do not “work together to provide legislative certainty to the crypto business,” 2023 might be the first year “a country other than the US leads the digital asset revolution,” according to Stuart Alderoty, General Counsel at Ripple.

Alderoty began his op-ed on RealClearMarkets.com on Friday (March 18) by stating that “blockchain technologies are altering the way we exchange value and information.”

Then he commented about the “misguided litigation” against Ripple that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) initiated in December 2020

“Since the SEC’s unfounded suit against Ripple was filed, it has become increasingly clear—as we said from the very beginning—that the case is a haphazard attempt to regulate the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry as a whole.

The lawsuit against Ripple won’t be the last—SEC Chair Gensler has warned of increased enforcement actions against the industry. Ill-conceived, ad hoc litigation instead of orderly rulemaking, hobbles the entire digital asset ecosystem.“

Ripple Claims It Is “regulation by enforcement”

Ripple’s General Counsel went on to say that this “regulation by enforcement” approach does not provide the regulatory clarity that consumers and crypto companies badly need:

“If there’s one lesson of this litigation for the entire cryptocurrency industry and users, it’s that regulation by enforcement doesn’t provide the regulatory clarity needed by innovators and consumers. Unfortunately, in an effort to advance its own jurisdiction, the SEC seems to prefer what one current Commissioner described as pursuing an agenda of “strategic ambiguity.”

Conclusion

The industry is not asking to be free of regulation. Rather, the industry is clamoring for clear rules of the road to foster innovation and growth around these technologies. Thoughtful regulation, consistently applied, leads to predictable results.

“SEC Chair Gensler says today’s cryptocurrency market is like a football field with no ref. To the contrary, the SEC has created an unlevel playing field where they get to pick winners and losers according to an ambiguous set of rules they make up as they go along.“

Read More: Ripple’s $XRP Lawsuit- Denial Of SEC’s Motion To Strike ‘Fair Notice’ Defense Was ‘Huge Win’