In an interview with Consumer News and Business Channel (CNBC)’s ‘Squawk Box Asia’, CEO of financial technology company Ripple Brad Garlinghouse stated that the United States government lacks clear regulations on cryptocurrency, citing their case against the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as an example.
He added that the country’s unclear regulatory framework for cryptocurrency can affect the road to innovation and hamper any possible investments in the future.
Garlinghouse also gave credit to ‘markets like Singapore and even parts of Korea’ where the government has made efforts to create a concrete framework for regulating cryptocurrencies in their respective countries, unlike in the United States.
Moreover, Garlinghouse suggested that the ‘industry should focus on utility’ and how these advancements in technology can help solve financial issues experienced by various industries and individuals.
He added that Ripple will continue to provide XRP’s services across the world to promote efficient borderless payments, all while proceeding with their lawsuit.
Ripple has been in a legal battle with the SEC since December of last year wherein the SEC filed charges against Ripple and its CEO and co-founder Christian Larsen after the fintech company profited more than $1.3 billion through an unregistered securities offering.
The SEC’s complaint stated that XRP is classified as a security or financial asset and not a currency. Moreover, SEC alleged that Ripple failed to provide ‘financial and managerial information’ that is required when selling investment products.
In the complaint, it showed that Ripple violated multiple sections of the Securities Act of 1933 and ‘deprived potential purchasers of adequate disclosures,’ according to the director of the SEC’s Enforcement Division, Stephanie Avakian in a press release last December 22, 2020.
However, Garlinghouse countered that ‘XRP is a currency and does not have to be registered as an investment contract.’ He added that Ripple has always used XRP in a similar way that Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) were utilized, however, they were the only ones subject to an SEC lawsuit.
He said that the US ‘is the only country on the planet that has said XRP is anything other than a currency.’
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