- SEC probes Binance US for its alleged link to market makers.
- Sigma Chain AG and Merit Peak Ltd are the two affiliated companies under surveillance with Binance US.
- The SEC is also investigating many other crypto firms for illegal proceedings.
The Securities and Exchange Commission of the US has been scanning the crypto industry for any false proceedings. Following this, a few crypto platforms like BlockFi, Ripple, and now, Binance US are under its microscope.
Among the new cases, the crypto exchange Binance US makes it to the list of SEC’s crypto irregularities. Binance and its affiliates — Sigma Chain AG and Merit Peak Ltd are under investigation for alleged connection of the company with the two market makers.
The two companies are reported to have been buying and selling crypto on the Binance US to ease price volatility and gain profit from small differences. However, SEC is requesting information from Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao about the market makers to ascertain whether the company disclosed the link to the users.
The news comes in light of the supposed ties the two entities have with CZ. Despite the ongoing investigation, the commission did not disclose to the public how it intends to proceed with the enforcement procedures.
This is not the first time Binance is facing litigation. Just last year, the Department of Justice and Internal Revenue Service also investigated the exchange for illegal trading activities.
To add, SEC had also accused BlockFi of having numerous high-yielding unregistered accounts. Due to that, BlockFi has agreed to pay a penalty of $100 million as a settlement. This would mark the rarest kind of settlement in the history of the crypto industry.
Looking at the SEC vs. Ripple case, the commission had reported that the crypto platform traded 1.3 billion XRP without registering under SEC. Moreover, their investigative findings reveal that Ripple distributed billions of XRP in exchange for non-cash considerations like labor and market-making services.