SEC moves to dismiss Binance litigation as agency looks to forge new regulatory path for crypto

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is seeking to dismiss its lawsuit against crypto giant Binance, according to a court document filed on Thursday.The agency and lawyers representing the SEC, Binance, and former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao filed a "joint stipulation" in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia."Whereas, in light of the foregoing, and in the exercise of its discretion and as a policy matter, the Commission believes the dismissal of this Litigation is appropriate," according to the filing.The case has been in a holding pattern over the past few months after both the SEC and Binance asked the judge to stay the case in February, and have since asked for several extensions. The SEC sued Binance in 2023 over being unregistered and misrepresenting trading controls. That same year, Binance and Zhao pled guilty to Bank Secrecy Act violations and agreed to pay over $4 billion to resolve a Justice Department investigation.The SEC declined to comment on specifics, though directed The Block to its litigation release that states "the Commission’s decision to seek dismissal of this Litigation does not necessarily reflect the Commission’s position on any other litigation or proceeding.” Binance celebrated the move. "The dismissal of the SEC’s case against Binance is a landmark moment," a Binance spokesperson said in an emailed statement. "We’re deeply grateful to Chairman Paul Atkins and the Trump administration for recognizing that innovation can’t thrive under regulation by enforcement." Both parties mentioned the creation of the SEC's new crypto task force in Thursday's court filing. That task force has met with various stakeholders over the past few months as the agency takes a different approach to regulating the digital asset industry compared to years past. Under former SEC Chair Gary Gensler and the previous Biden administration, the agency brought several cases against large crypto firms.The securities watchdog later dropped several high-profile cases — against firms including Coinbase, Uniswap, and OpenSea, among others during the past few months under the new Trump administration. Those actions do not mean people can do whatever they want in the space, Republican Commissioner Hester Peirce told a crowd at the Bitcoin 2025 conference in Las Vegas earlier on Thursday."The goal is to use our enforcement tool for what it was intended to be used for, which is when there are clear rules and people violate them, then we can use our enforcement tool," Peirce, who had criticized the agency's previous approach to crypto. "It's certainly not to say that there will not be enforcement. There's a lot of bad activity, as we all know, that's perpetrated in the name of crypto. Updated on May 29 at 9:31 p.m. UTC to include comment from Binance and details.Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet that delivers news, research, and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is a majority investor of The Block. Foresight Ventures invests in other companies in the crypto space. Crypto exchange Bitget is an anchor LP for Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently to deliver objective, impactful, and timely information about the crypto industry. Here are our current financial disclosures.© 2025 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.