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A U.S. District Court judge presiding over the case between Binance and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has denied a motion by the exchange that could have blocked the regulator from issuing public statements on the case.
Judge Amy Berman Jackson issued an order this morning stating that the need for the court's intervention in enforcing ethical obligations "it is not apparent" and deemed that "wordsmithing the parties' press releases" is neither necessary nor appropriate.
Judge Jackson also added that the statements released by the SEC so far do not support Binance's argument that it would "materially affect proceedings in this case."
‘Marketing Theater’
Binance's legal team filed the motion against the SEC on June 21, alleging misconduct in a press release from the regulator.
The SEC had accused Binance and its CEO Changpang 'CZ' Zhao of commingling customer assets in the statement, after reaching a settlement deal to avoid freezing assets of Binance.US customers in exchange for greater transparency and oversight earlier that day.
In its motion, Binance had argued that the regulator had "no evidence" of customer assets being "dissipated, commingled, or misused in any way" and that its press release was, “misleading, contains statements that the SEC knows to be unsupported by evidence, and is inconsistent with the rules of professional conduct.”
Judge Jackson also announced the hearing dates for SEC's case against Binance and its CEO, where the regulator has filed 13 charges, including violations of securities law and the commingling of user funds.
Binance is required to present its defense on September 21, which will be followed by the SEC's counter argument on November 7 and a day for "any due replies" on December 12.
John Reed Stark, a cybersecurity consultant and former chief of the SEC Office of Internet Enforcement, tweeted this morning that the exchange's allegation of misconduct on the SEC’s part appeared "frivolous on its face" and more akin to "marketing theater."
Stark also pointed out that the judge denied the motion in a "lightning fast decision" without requiring "response/opposition from the SEC (thankfully saving the SEC a lot of time and effort)."
He added that the motion would likely "prompt the criminal authorities to expedite" their actions against Binance.