The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has decided to close its investigation into Ethereum, confirming that it will not treat Ether as a security. This announcement comes from the Ethereum development company, Consensys, the recipient of official communication from the SEC’s Enforcement Division. The team at Consensys views this as a significant victory for Ethereum developers and tech providers, as there will be no allegations of security transaction-related charges pertaining to ETH sales.
The SEC’s decision to halt their investigation into Ether was reportedly prompted after Consensys sent an inquiry to the SEC earlier this month. This correspondence was aimed at determining whether the SEC planned to continue its probe, considering their recent approval of exposure to Ether through exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Consensys posited that this approval acknowledges ETH as a commodity.
Following their lobbying efforts, Consensys received a response indicating the SEC’s decision not to recommend any enforcement action. This reference to the SEC’s determination was shared by Laura Brookover, the senior counsel at Consensys. However, the SEC has not yet officially commented on this decision.
Earlier this year, the SEC had issued subpoenas to several firms linked to efforts to designate Ethereum’s native token as a security. During this time, Consensys had filed a lawsuit against the SEC, following a Wells notice signifying that their MetaMask crypto wallet could potentially have infringed upon security laws. The legal case is still ongoing, despite the SEC reportedly acknowledging Ethereum as a commodity.