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Crypto is rapidly changing the economic landscape globally. The introduction of Bitcoin and Ethereum has transformed the traditional concept of money and has brought new angles to consider. While these cryptocurrencies are growing with an increased speed to acquire the world, multiple legal intricacies are yet unresolved. In the below list, some of them will be listed for crypto enthusiasts to follow:
This is one of the most notorious scams that ever happened in the history of crypto. Dr. Ruja Ignatova, her brother Konstantin Ignatova, and Sebastian Greenwood set up OneCoin, a fraudulent company that scammed millions of people between 2014 and 2016. OneCoin was launched as the biggest cryptocurrency after Bitcoin, but it was all a façade as this company had no blockchain for their crypto.
However, the fraud started coming to light when, in 2017, Bulgarian police raided one of OneCoin’s headquarters, and Dr. Ruja Ignatova disappeared. Since then, she has been missing, and this case is pending. The victims are still waiting for justice.
In 2024, SEC. was challenged for its operations by 18 states and a blockchain industry in the Eastern District of Kentucky. The main accusation of this case is the SEC’s assertion of regulatory authority over digital asset trading platforms. States highlighted how the SEC’s security policies are nullifying their protection measures and preventing them from taking essential measures during the crypto exchange. This case is still in an early stage and waiting for a verdict from the court.
This is one of the biggest and most-discussed ongoing crypto legal cases that’s waiting for a conclusion this year. This case was initially registered in 2023, but to date, there’s no verdict given. The case was started in July 2023 when the SEC charged Ripple Labs, Inc. for doing some unregistered business with their XRP token. In July 2023, the court resolved and provided them a verdict where it rejected Ripple's "essential ingredients" test.
Once again, the SEC filed a notice for appeal in 2024, and Ripple Labs cross-appealed. This case is still an ongoing one that will likely show how Howey applies to digital assets unless the Trump administration determines to freeze the litigation.
This year, the SEC has a few legal cases to solve. This January, the Southern District of New York court granted Coinbase’s motion to certify for interlocutory appeal and denied the 2024 verdict. This certificate allows the Second Circuit to address Howey's reach and application to digital assets. Precisely, in secondary market transactions.
This was not the case. The case appears from the SEC’s 2023 enforcement action, where it claimed that Coinbase is an unregistered national securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency. It argued with its concern for this company intermediating transactions in 13 digital assets. The court has denied Coinbase’s argument; therefore, it is waiting for a solution.
Once again, it’s SEC. But this time, the SEC is accused by the opposing party, Bitnomial Exchange. This case involves one offensive litigation against the SEC, challenging its authorities to regulate a cryptoasset security futures product. Bitnomial Exchange claimed that XRP futures are not security futures under the Exchange Act. The company argued that the SEC has created an impossible regulatory situation by choosing the notion that XRP futures are security futures that require both registration of the underlying asset and Bitnomial's registration as a national securities exchange.
This case is still in its early stages, where both sides are arguing. Hopefully, in 2025 the court will come up with a verdict to let the users know whose claims are right.
This is another crypto fight that is in its initial stage currently. In December 2024, three blockchain industry organizations filed a lawsuit against the Department of the Treasury in the Northern District of Texas, challenging the rule of the Treasury Department imposing "broker" reporting on DeFi participants.
As the case started, the complaints heightened eventually; it seemed to challenge the Administrative Procedure Act and the U.S. Constitution. The Blockchain Associations argue that these regulations are arbitrary and capricious and are going against the Administrative Procedure Act. The conclusion is pending. Let’s see what the court decides.
These above-mentioned unsolved cases have brought crypto to court in recent times. Well, these are not the only ones, though. Over the years, multiple scams and rule violations have taken place that have taken crypto to legal fights, but most of them are now resolved. Currently, these five are the key ongoing cases that will probably conclude in 2025.
