In a recent development, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) complaint against Binance raises questions about the resignation of former Binance.US CEO, Brian Brooks, just three months into his role.
The complaint references an “unnamed source” who briefly ran Binance.US during the same period when Brooks served as CEO.
Former banking regulator Brian Brooks assumed the role of Binance.US CEO on May 1, 2021, but indications from the SEC complaint imply that he discovered a lack of control over the company’s operations, leading to his resignation announcement on August 7.
While cryptocurrency lawyer James Murphy pointed out this correlation in a tweet, Binance’s Chief Communications Officer, Patrick Hillman, disputed the speculation, cautioning that it might be an individual’s narrative and may not hold up over time.
After the SEC filed 13 charges against Binance for alleged illegal operations and failure to register as a securities exchange in the US, the cryptocurrency market reacted negatively, causing Bitcoin and Ether to decline by 5.6% and 4.3% within the last 24 hours.
Notably, publicly-traded crypto companies like Coinbase also witnessed a sharp drop in share prices, with Coinbase shares falling 9% during market trading hours on June 5.
The US SEC’s recent lawsuit against Binance has expanded the list of labeled securities to over 61 cryptocurrencies, impacting approximately $100 billion worth of tokens in circulation.
Market analyst Mark Palmer of Berenberg Capital sees parallels between the Binance lawsuit and previous cases against US-based exchanges Bittrex and Kraken, potentially indicating a future regulatory impact on Coinbase.
Coinbase investors should closely follow developments as the exchange may need to adjust its business model and geographic focus due to potential SEC enforcement, which could put around 37% of its net revenue from crypto token trading and staking operations at risk.
