SEC is sued by a watchdog group for withholding crypto report

Empower Oversight filed a suit against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, accusing them of failing to release a report that was long overdue on the ethical conflict and selective enforcement in the agency.

SEC Office of Inspector General has completed the report for more than one year, and yet the agency is still refusing to release the document despite numerous Freedom of Information Act Requests. lawsuit.

The suit seeks to require the SEC’s disclosure of findings related to former SEC William Hinman is the Director of Division of Corporate Financial Services. 

Hinman was investigated for potential conflict of interest in Hinman’s previous firm Simpson Thacher which had a financial interest in Ethereum.ETH). 

SEC’s ‘silent treatment’

Empower Oversight is pursuing SEC transparency, since August 20, 2021. They have filed multiple FOIA requests as well as lawsuits to obtain documents relating agency communications with cryptocurrency entities. Watchdog claims that SEC delays are indicative of an ongoing pattern to avoid accountability for its enforcement actions.

“The SEC’s silent treatment is old and tired, and its refusal to release these records is, quite frankly, suspicious,” said Tristan Leavitt President of Empower Oversight. 

Leavitt stressed that transparency was essential for addressing concerns about regulatory bias in the crypto industry and to ensure accountability.

Coinbase and other industry leaders have criticized the SEC’s regulatory approach. accusing the agency The selective application of enforcement 

Gary Gensler, the former SEC chairperson, was also under scrutiny. aggressive litigation Crypto firms such as Coinbase and Ripple are being targeted.

Empower Oversight is committed to getting the SEC OIG Report, and argues that the public’s access to findings will allow them to assess the SEC’s treatment of crypto regulation.