Binance, one of the world’s top crypto exchanges, has filed a motion to dismiss the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) suit against it. The CFTC had sued Binance, its founder Changpeng Zhao, and compliance officer Samuel Lim in a U.S. court in Illinois in March, alleging that the exchange operated a derivatives trading operation in the U.S. and directed its American employees to obscure their locations to evade restrictions.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) also sued Binance, asking for a temporary restraining order to be placed on all funds deposited at Binance.US. However, the restraining order, referred to as a death penalty by a lawyer for Binance.US, was never put in place as Binance.US and the SEC agreed to a deal that would see the branch’s assets and servers be put under the control of only its U.S.-based staff.
Binance’s response to the CFTC’s complaint is due later this week, on July 27. The filing did not specify Binance’s argument, only that it is requesting to exceed the standard 15-page limit due to the complexity of the case. Lim also intends to file a separate Motion to Dismiss.
Since then, attitudes toward the U.S. regulatory environment have shifted, with Ripple scoring a partial win against the Securities and Exchange Commission earlier in July, the filing noted.