In an interview with DL News Republican Patrick McHenry said Gary Gensler should have acted faster to punish the largest cryptocurrency exchange. McHenry called the trading floor an entity engaging in illegal financial transactions. The politician believes that Binance does not adhere to U.S. laws, while acknowledging that the United States does not have a clear set of rules for cryptocurrency companies.
Last week, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accused Binance of failing to register as a broker-dealer and market manipulation. Binance denies the charges and is ready to prove its case in court. Asked whether federal prosecutors would follow the SEC’s lead and bring a criminal case against Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, McHenry said:
“Yes, and the SEC should have taken tough action a long time ago. Instead, the regulator went after Kim Kardashian. Frankly, Binance should have been removed years ago.
McHenry’s remarks relate to charges brought by the agency against American star Kim Kardashian for illegally promoting the EMAX token. Last October, Kardashian settled the lawsuit by paying a $1.3 million fine.
Congressman believes lawmakers must also work hard to help prosecute abusers more effectively. It should be noted that McHenry co-authored a bill that could bring clarity to the regulation of the industry within the United States. A draft bill introduced in early June distinguishes between types of cryptocurrencies and securities and commodities.
But Democrat Maxine Waters is concerned that the bill would allow cryptocurrency companies, now accused of violating securities laws, to continue doing business by obtaining temporary registration in the country. This would stop SEC enforcement actions against cryptocurrencies, even if they do engage in fraud, Waters said.
Recently, Republicans Warren Davidson and Tom Emmer introduced a bill proposing that the SEC remove the chairmanship.