On September 12th, lawyers representing BAM Trading Services, the company behind the Binance.US cryptocurrency exchange, filed sealed confidential documents opposing the U.S. SEC’s request for more information from Binance US.
The defendants argued that the SEC’s demands for documents and questions were too broad and burdensome, going beyond the scope of the agreed-upon consent order.
BAM’s lawyers said that the SEC’s request for specifics, as well as their wish to depose BAM’s CEO Brian Shroder and CFO Jasmine Lee, were unreasonable.
BAM’s lawyers also mentioned that the SEC’s motion didn’t provide any evidence that shows Shroder and Lee played a significant role in the day-to-day operations of managing and transferring customer assets at Binance US.
“BAM’s CEO and CFO have no unique knowledge regarding facts relevant to the limited topics identified in the consent order’s expedited discovery provision,” the lawyers said.
The lawyers added, “The burden imposed by these depositions far outweighs their potential benefit, and the discovery sought is disproportionate to the needs contemplated by the consent order.”
The lawyers also mentioned that BAM has suggested several other people who can provide more information about how BAM operates. One of these individuals is Erik Kellogg, who holds the position of Chief Information Security Officer at BAM.
The lawyers also pointed out that there is a significant mismatch between the SEC’s aggressive and overly broad tactics and the limited expedited discovery process that both parties had previously agreed upon in the consent order.
BAM’s response followed an agreement between the SEC and Binance regarding a protective motion. This motion mandates that confidential information must be submitted in a way that keeps it private and inaccessible to the public.
The plaintiff and defendants jointly submitted this motion on September 11, committing to treat sensitive information as protected materials.
This restricts access to specific parties like the judge, attorneys, plaintiffs, and defendants, ensuring that only they can view this confidential and non-public information.
