In a pivotal legal development, the U.S. judiciary has largely endorsed the continuation of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) claims against Binance, the preeminent global cryptocurrency exchange. This judicial pronouncement marks a significant moment in the high-stakes legal conflict.

The SEC’s allegations, encompassing Binance’s staking program, the post-ICO sale of BNB tokens, and multiple anti-fraud violations, will advance. Judge Amy Berman Jackson, in her June 28 court filing, affirmed the regulator’s assertions that former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao functioned as a “control person” and that Binance was obligated to register under the Exchange Act.

Notably, the court dismissed claims related to BNB secondary market sales and all transactions involving the Binance USD (BUSD) stablecoin, representing a partial setback for the SEC. Finance lawyer Scott Johnsson described this outcome as a significant setback for the securities regulator, while Fox Business journalist Eleanor Terrett predicted that legal teams at Coinbase, Kraken, and Consensys would leverage this ruling to fortify their defenses in ongoing litigations.

Additionally, Judge Jackson dismissed the SEC’s accusations pertaining to Binance’s passive income feature, “Simple Earn,” and scheduled a follow-up court hearing for July 9.

The SEC, under the leadership of Gary Gensler, initiated the lawsuit against Binance in June 2023, alleging that the exchange had offered unregistered securities and was operating unlawfully within U.S. borders. Binance and CZ sought to dismiss the lawsuit three months later, contending that the SEC had overstepped its legal boundaries.

In a broader regulatory context, seven U.S. states, including Alaska, Florida, Maine, and North Carolina, have either revoked or denied Binance the renewal of its money transmitter license. Concurrently, CZ is serving a four-month prison sentence for breaches of money laundering statutes.

Despite these legal challenges, Binance maintains its status as the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, with a user base exceeding 200 million and assets under management surpassing $100 billion.