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Binance.US’s request for ‘wordsmithing’ SEC denied

A U.S. judge has denied Binance.US’ request to restrict the SEC from issuing “misleading” statements, stating that it is not court’s goal to “wordsmith” public remarks.

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  • A U.S federal judge has denied Binance’s request to censor the SECs’ press releases. 
  • Founder CZ is in trouble with the federal government for violating securities laws.

A U.S. federal judge has denied Binance.US’ request to restrict the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) use of terms relating to Binance.US’ management of customer funds in press releases, which the crypto exchange believed could hurt it at trial.

Judge Amy Berman Jackson, presiding over the SEC-Binance.US case, stated that it is not the court’s goal to “wordsmith” public remarks from any of the case’s parties.

It is also unclear whether the agency’s public relations initiatives will affect court proceedings in this case.

Lawyers for Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by trading volumes, filed a complaint regarding the SEC’s press release on 23 June, citing the regulator’s “misleading extrajudicial statements.” They emphasized that it also risks tainting the jury pool with inaccurate descriptions of the evidence regarding the defence.

The lawyers also said that there is no indication that BAM Trading Services’s customer assets have been misappropriated, commingled, or misused in any way.

The court ruled that Binance should respond to the SEC’s allegations by 21 September. The regulator should reply to the exchange’s pleading on 7 November.

Ray of hope in Kazakhstan?

The court is looking into Binance’s complaint against the regulator as the company prepares to battle the premier U.S. agency. The SEC filed a lawsuit against Binance early this month, alleging that the trading platform and its CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao violated federal securities laws.

Binance announced the launch of a regulated crypto platform in Kazakhstan last week. The same week, the Belgian Financial Services and Markets Authority however ordered the exchange to stop offering crypto exchange and custody wallet services.

The French authorities are also investigating the exchange. Binance has also reportedly withdrawn its application with Austria’s financial regulatory authority.