(AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond is challenging the Biden Administration’s sweeping regulations of cryptocurrency with a lawsuit against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) calling the overreach “unlawful.”
Drummond and a coalition of 17 other state attorneys general filed the litigation last week in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky.
Recent estimates show more than 50 million people, or roughly one in five Americans, have acquired a digital asset. Many U.S. businesses now accept Bitcoin and other digital assets as payment for anything from groceries to airline tickets to real estate.
Despite previous actions and public statements to the contrary from SEC Chair Gary Gensler, the commission has launched a regulatory assault against crypto companies. Drummond said the SEC overstepped its authorization from Congress and is attempting to classify cryptocurrencies as investment contracts – like stocks or bonds – subject to the commission’s regulation.
“We should be encouraging this vibrant, new digital asset industry for its ability to innovate, create jobs and make financial services more accessible for millions of Americans,” Drummond said. “This regulatory overreach by the Biden Administration means to reach into the wallets of hardworking Oklahomans, and we will oppose it vigorously.”
Also signing the complaint are the attorneys general of Kentucky, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and West Virginia.
Read the complaint here.
