The year 2023 has been pivotal for crypto investors, with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) taking center stage. The signs were clear by the end of 2022, as senior SEC officials warned that crypto firms disregarding the commission would face a nightmare year. Indeed, numerous crypto assets and companies felt the full brunt of this prediction, especially during the first week of June, which turned out to be the longest week for the industry as major lawsuits were filed against the two largest exchanges within two days.
The collapse of Terra significantly impacted numerous crypto firms and millions of investors last year. The domino effect of bankruptcies, including that of FTX, was witnessed. The United States, with many affected citizens, intervened and filed a lawsuit against TerraLabs and Do Kwon. Now, according to a Reuters report, a decision in favor of the SEC has been announced.
The judge ruled on the sale of unregistered securities, a decision that wasn’t surprising given the similarities with the XRP Coin case. While XRP Coin’s exchange sales were not considered securities, LUNA and UST sales had previously been identified as such. For more details, one could revisit the days when Ripple‘s senior executives spent considerable time explaining how UST and LUNA’s mechanics were significantly different from XRP Coin.
Following the news, the price of LUNA Coin plummeted to $0.848. With the court’s decision confirming its status as a security, its delisting from exchanges in the U.S. region and the potential for a prolonged downward trend would not be surprising. However, those chasing speculative trades might still attempt a few irrational rallies, given that the daily volume is around 20 million dollars (Binance) and the order book depth is not very substantial.
