Alexander Grieve, Paradigm’s government affairs lead, has attempted to decode the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s recent attack on Ripple’s stablecoin project.
As noted by Grieve, the mention of Ripple’s stablecoin project, which is yet to be named, came after it became clear that the stablecoin legislation would not be attached to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act of 2024. This presented an opportunity for the SEC to go after the SEC in its recent filing.
The agency mentioned that Ripple was gearing up to launch an “unregistered crypto asset.” The stablecoin project was unveiled by the San Francisco-based company last month.
So far, the lawmakers are still conducting negotiations over the content of the stablecoin bill. Last month, U.S. House Representative Maxine Waters (D-California) hinted that its final version could be ready in the near future.
As reported by U.Today, Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) introduced a new version of their stablecoin legislation in April. Notably, the bill would make it illegal to issue algorithmic stablecoins.
“The Lummis-Gillibrand and McHenry-Waters stablecoin bills leverage prudential oversight (i.e. Fed, OCC, FDIC, state regulators) for stablecoin regulation…The SEC (a PWG member!) doesn’t seem to care,” Grieve said.
He further stressed that stablecoin issuers currently do not have to register with the SEC, which is why he finds the “unregistered” part puzzling.
He urged Congress to pass “technology neutral” and “sensible” stablecoin legislation that would put an end to the SEC’s “farcical efforts.”
Paradigm hired Grieve last year in order to be able to influence U.S. cryptocurrency policy. Back then, he noted that there was “legislative momentum” in Congress, which means that the industry’s efforts were not in vain. He also cited Ripple’s partial win against the SEC as a positive development for the industry.
