SNEAK PEEK:
- Brad Garlinghouse criticizes SEC’s regulatory approach towards digital assets.
- Garlinghouse suggests SEC’s lawsuits are a distraction from their missteps.
- The tension between Ripple and SEC highlights broader concerns in cryptocurrency regulation.
In a series of tweets, Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple Labs, took to Twitter to express his criticism towards the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and its Chair, Gary Gensler. The tweets were seen as a direct attack on the SEC’s regulatory approach towards digital assets, with Garlinghouse accusing the agency of being misleading and ineffective.
If it wasn’t already clear, it should be now – Chair Gensler’s laughable “pro-innovation” stance (as he said today), is exactly the opposite. What this also tells me is that the SEC is throwing lawsuits at the wall and hoping they distract from the agency’s FTX debacle.
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) June 6, 2023
In his first tweet, Garlinghouse pointed at Chair Gensler’s proclaimed stance as “pro-innovation,” suggesting that the reality is quite the opposite. The Ripple CEO also insinuated that the SEC is attempting to distract from recent missteps, particularly referring to a situation he termed the “FTX debacle.”
This statement indicates that Garlinghouse perceives the SEC’s lawsuits as a tool for distraction rather than a vehicle for proper regulation. However, the tweet doesn’t explicitly give the “FTX debacle” context.
In a follow-up tweet, Garlinghouse criticized Gensler, labelling him an “unelected bureaucrat” and accusing him of attempting to mask a lack of power. This reflects a broader concern among some industry leaders and participants that regulatory authorities like the SEC are overstepping their boundaries in the rapidly-evolving domain of digital assets.
It’s embarrassing to watch an unelected bureaucrat flail like this to mask the fact that he and his agency don’t have the power that he so desperately craves. No one is fooled.
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) June 6, 2023
In addition, these tweets reflect the ongoing tension between the SEC and the cryptocurrency industry, with Ripple Labs itself being a central figure in this narrative. In Ripple’s case, the firm has been embroiled in a lawsuit with the SEC since December 2020. Reports suggest that the agency alleged that the company conducted an unregistered securities offering by selling XRP, Ripple’s associated digital currency.
Garlinghouse’s outspoken criticism of the SEC is not new. He has consistently argued that the agency’s approach to regulation is stifling innovation in the U.S. and causing the country to fall behind other nations with clearer and more accommodating frameworks for digital assets.