Post Negotiation Deal Between Binance.US and SEC Approved

According to recent reports, on June 17, United States Judge Amy Berman Jackson authorized the anticipated agreement between Binance.US, Binance, and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

SEC Settles with Binance.US

Speculations about the settlement started when Judge Jackson directed the SEC and Binance.US to proceed to magistrate court so that they may try to come to a compromise in order to preserve consumer assets without the necessity of shutting down the exchange. 

The agreement between the SEC and Binance.US states: “Defendants shall repatriate to the United States, transfer to BAM Trading, and confirm that BAM Trading maintains possession, custody and control in the United States of all fiat currency and crypto assets that are deposited, held, traded, or accrued by customers […].”

Only Binance.US Staff to have Access to Funds

According to the authorized agreement, only Binance.US staff will have access to customer assets until the dispute is concluded. Customers of the United States will continue to be able to withdraw money at present. Binance.US posted on Twitter: 

“We are pleased to inform you that the Court did not grant the SEC’s request for a TRO and freeze of assets on our platform which was clearly unjustified by both the facts and the law.”

Binance Global Execs Barred from Accessing Keys

The decision precludes Binance global executives from having access to wallet private keys, hardware wallets, or root access to Binance.US’s Amazon Web Services tools. This judgment has significant implications for Binance Holdings and emphasizes how important US personnel are to safeguarding the reliability and security of digital assets. 

SEC Demands Verified Accounting

The agreement further specifies that Binance.US shall act in order to provide “a verified written accounting” of accounts pertaining to BAM entities worth at more than $1,000 to the SEC.

John Reed Stark, a former director of the SEC’s Office of Internet Enforcement, commented on the case on Twitter and said that the deal included a “particularly interesting provision” about the repatriation of certain assets to the United States. Interestingly, Stark previously predicted that the Binance-SEC deal may be presented to the court as a “Consent Order” if it were to be set in.