- Fox Business reporter Eleanor Terrett tweeted that the SEC had served notice.
- Terrett said that she sided with the statement of multiple reliable sources.
Circle, the company that issued USD Coin, has refuted that it was served with a “Wells Notice” due to the stablecoin’s tie to the US dollar. On February 14, Fox Business reporter Eleanor Terrett tweeted that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had ordered Circle to stop selling USDC because the stablecoin was an unregistered security.
Nonetheless, Dante Disparte, chief strategy officer and director of worldwide policy at Circle Pay, quickly shot down the claim. Disparte responded to Terrett’s statement on Twitter 15 minutes later, stating that his company had not received a Wells Notice.
An SEC Wells Notice is an official notice that the agency intends to take enforcement action against the receiver. To counter Circle’s denial, Terrett said that she sided with the statement of multiple reliable sources and offered an apology.
Deep Consequences
Terrett has subsequently removed the first tweet. The Twitter account was removed for a short time but is again back online. This week, Paxos Trust Company, the issuer of Binance USD, said it had received a Wells Notice accusing it failed to register the sale under federal securities laws, prompting widespread concern that regulators may take action against stablecoin issuers.
The crypto market has recently stabilized after a hectic last year. Earlier it was about staking and now stablecoins. Changpeng Zhao (CZ), CEO of Binance, has expressed concern that the crypto sector as a whole would see deep consequences if Binance USD (BUSD) is classified as a security. His caution came after the recent crackdown by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
