The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has dropped its investigations into fintech firm Robinhood and cryptocurrency protocol Uniswap, driving UNI prices higher despite the broader crypto market downturn.
The developments came amid a significant shift in the SEC’s approach toward blockchain, digital assets, and crypto, as the new leadership under Acting Chair Mark Uyeda pivots closer than ever to the burgeoning industry.
SEC Officially Closes Robinhood Crypto Probe
Robinhood, whose digital assets arm Robinhood Crypto (RHC) was the subject of a Wells notice in mid-2024, announced Monday that the SEC has officially closed its investigation into RHC, deciding not to pursue an enforcement action against the company.
“We applaud the staff’s decision to close this investigation with no action. Let me by crystal clear—this investigation never should have been opened. Robinhood Crypto always has and will always respect federal securities laws and never allowed transactions in securities,” Dan Gallagher, Robinhood Markets, Inc.’s chief legal, compliance and corporate affairs officer, said in a statement.
Robinhood Chair and CEO Vlad Tenev also said Tuesday that he sees “a role for regulators” in the sense that customers want to be assured the companies they entrust their assets with are held accountable.
He noted that Robinhood has been regulated “for a very long time,” and he still believes “regulation is good” for crypto businesses.
When the SEC under former Chair Gary Gensler announced the Wells notice on Robinhood, many crypto experts and lawyers criticized the Wall Street regulator for abusing the Wells system.
Robinhood isn’t the only company providing crypto services that has seen relief this week. Uniswap also announced that the SEC has dropped its probe into the exchange.
Uniswap Hails ‘Win for DeFi’
In its announcement, Uniswap Labs said the SEC’s decision was a “win for DeFi,” noting that the U.S. now has the opportunity to lead the crypto industry with the “SEC’s new leadership.”
“We have always welcomed dialogue with regulators and policymakers on developing clear, sensible laws and rules for new technology like DeFi,” the company said.
Uniswap Labs CEO Hayden Adams also expressed thanks to the new SEC leadership for “taking a more constructive approach” in regulating DeFi projects and other crypto businesses.
He noted that the development reaffirms what Uniswap has been saying all along: “decentralized technology and self-custody are inherently different from the centralized, intermediated systems they aim to replace.”
$UNI Survives Crypto Market Bloodshed
Following news of the development, prices of UNI, the native cryptocurrency of the Uniswap protocol, climbed. The token is up 4.7% in the day amid a significant downturn in the prices of most major crypto assets, including Bitcoin.
The current price at around $8.30 is still very far from UNI’s all-time high above $44, but the move from around $7.66 a day earlier to its current trading price levels is still a notable step upward should UNI be able to retain momentum after the SEC news.
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