The United States (US) Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), as the plaintiff, and the defendants, namely, Binance Holdings, Binance.US, and their CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ), have jointly submitted a status report to the District Court of Columbia.
The legal proceedings, despite the efforts of Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui to maintain momentum, appear to encounter difficulties, particularly concerning document discovery and deposition procedures.
The joint status report was officially filed on the evening of 11 October, as indicated in the court records.
Following a directive from the court issued on 18 September, urging the cooperative handling of various discovery requests and depositions, both parties have encountered challenges in reaching a consensus regarding these matters.
Notably, Binance.US (referred to as BAM) and the SEC have confirmed that the next deposition is scheduled for 18 October, with several more to follow throughout October and November.
The SEC has expressed its concerns, alleging that BAM has only produced approximately 382 documents and is unwilling to disclose its position on producing the remaining requested documents as outlined in the consent order.
BAM, in turn, contends that the SEC’s requests since the 18 September hearing are unreasonable and asserts that the SEC’s approach does not align with the terms of the consent order.
BAM had explained that:
“Since the hearing, the SEC has demanded that BAM agree to nine additional depositions, including depositions of six current shareholders, one former shareholder, BAM’s Head of Product, and a deposition under a federal rule. The SEC also served BAM with over 60 document requests.”
Furthermore, BAM clarifies that it licenses wallet custody software from Binance Holdings (BHL) and maintains no affiliation with Ceffu.
Notably, Binance.US is willing to provide evidence regarding this, albeit within a specific date range and not through a broad, unrestricted search.
As the legal proceedings unfold, the SEC has issued new requests for documents and depositions from Binance and CEO CZ.
There are plans for discussions among the SEC, Binance, and CZ regarding these requests.
It is essential to highlight that Binance and CZ have previously sought the court’s intervention, urging the dismissal of the lawsuit on grounds of the securities regulator allegedly exceeding its authority.
In parallel, both the SEC and Binance have petitioned the court to implement a protective order.
* Original content written by Coinlive. Coinbold is licensed to distribute this content by Coinlive.
