The latest move will set the cryptoverse ablaze. Venture capitalist Katie Hahn said the artwork should not be considered a security. The SEC move is the latest headache for OpenSea.
Gary Gensler sure knows how to provoke people.
Crypto elites have reacted to the news that OpenSea is the latest target of the US Securities and Exchange Commission and its hard-charging chair with a mixture of outrage and confusion.
“It is obviously absurd on its face,” He tweeted Kraken co-founder Jesse Powell.
“Gensler screws up again,” billionaire investor Mark Cuban has been posted On X.
“Congratulations and welcome to the club,” joked Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong. “I long wells notice companies.”
Are NFTs securities?
After a quiet summer in the SEC's three-year crackdown on crypto, OpenSea, the second-largest NFT marketplace, on Wednesday received a notification — known as a Wells notice — that it is the target of an investigation.
At issue is the agency considering whether to register NFTs sold on the site as securities, OpenSea CEO Devin Finzer said at X.
The move is consistent with Gensler's longstanding argument that most cryptocurrencies are regulated under the same 90-year-old laws that govern stocks, bonds and other securities.
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Although the SEC has accused Coinbase, Kraken and Binance, among other ventures, of offering unregistered securities, it now appears ready to designate NFTs as such.
Congratulations and welcome to the club! I've been watching Long Wells companies. https://t.co/cye8T5AlyS
— Brian Armstrong (@brian_armstrong) August 28, 2024
Congratulations and welcome to the club! I've been watching Long Wells companies. https://t.co/cye8T5AlyS
— Brian Armstrong (@brian_armstrong) August 28, 2024
The disclosure by OpenSea is just the latest dose of bad news as NFTs struggle to shake off a bear market. According to DefiLlama data, volume on OpenSea has fallen 82% this year to 240.6 ETH.
Open sea, it is Valued at $13 billion Following a fundraising round in 2022, Archival lost the top spot in the marketplace to Blur. Dephyllama data.
'Artworks and collectibles are not securities whether they are painted on canvas or coded on the blockchain.'
– Katie Haun, Haun Ventures
Not surprisingly, crypto supporters are of the opinion that nonfungible tokens, which are digital images, should be regulated like securities.
Katie Hahn, founder and CEO of Hahn Ventures, also picked up on that thread.
“Artworks and collectibles are not securities whether they are painted on canvas or coded on the blockchain” Said Han Ann X. is an investor in her firm OpenC.
As it happens, museums and fine art auction houses such as Sotheby's and Christie's continue to use NFTs despite their increased popularity.
Anthony Scaramucci, a hedge fund manager and crypto investor, expressed surprise at the development.
“Gary Gensler, Are Digital US Open Tickets Safe Now?” He is He tweeted Referring to a pro tennis tournament in New York.
The @SECGov Now trying to claim that NFTs are securities. What's next? Baseball cards? Comic books? @GaryGenslerBad faith and an un-American war on crypto is spreading. Creators and artists of the digital web3 are now cross-border. https://t.co/boCbFI0O3p
— Tyler Winklevoss (@tyler) August 28, 2024
The @SECGov Now trying to claim that NFTs are securities. What's next? Baseball cards? Comic books? @GaryGenslerBad faith and an un-American war on crypto is spreading. Creators and artists of the digital web3 are now cross-border. https://t.co/boCbFI0O3p
— Tyler Winklevoss (@tyler) August 28, 2024
Tyler Winklevoss, co-founder and CEO of Gemini, said the news was the latest sign of the SEC's “expanding war on crypto.”
“Creators and artists of the digital web3 are now at crosshairs,” he said Said.
'They're not dumb.'
For his part, Kraken's Powell speculates that the SEC is simply trying to monkeywinch the industry and is largely oblivious to the merits of its actions.
“They're not that stupid. The point isn't to win,” Powell complained. “The point is to distract, waste resources, spread fear, uncertainty and doubt and slow us down.”
A spokeswoman for the SEC said the agency does not comment on “the existence or non-existence of a possible investigation.”
Osato Awan-Nomayo Our Nigeria based DeFi representative. He covers DeFi and technology. To share tips or information about articles, please contact him here [email protected].
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