Attorneys general from 18 US states have filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kentucky against U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler and other officials of the agency, accusing them of “unconstitutional abuse of power” in relation to the cryptocurrency market.
In addition to the 18 prosecutors, a cryptocurrency advocacy group is listed as plaintiffs DeFi Education Fund, which requires sound regulatory policies in DeFi -sector.
The lawsuit claims that the SEC's crackdown on the crypto industry violates "fundamental principles of federalism," making it completely unconstitutional.
Prosecutors accused Gensler and other SEC officials of imposing restrictions and fines on crypto platforms without having a proper regulatory framework for doing so, which led to significant risks for one of the fastest-growing sectors of the U.S. economy.
Interestingly, on the same day that the lawsuit was filed against Gensler, he spoke at the 56th annual conference of the Institute for Securities Regulation, where he defended his position on the crypto industry.
The courts agreed with our actions to protect investors and rejected all arguments that the Securities and Exchange Commission could not enforce the law, the SEC chief said at the time.