The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) seeks to leverage a recent court ruling regarding insider trading allegations against Sameer Ramani, an associate of former Coinbase employees Ishan and Nikhil Wahi. In a notice submitted on Monday, the SEC notified Judge Katherine Polk Failla about a default judgment issued on March 1.
The SEC informed the court about a recent ruling in SEC v. Wahi, relevant to the court’s consideration of the Defendants’ Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings and the SEC’s Opposition.
The SEC had previously accused Ishan Wahi of coordinating Coinbase’s public listing announcements and tipping off his brother and Ramani about the timing of these announcements. Ishan and Nikhil Wahi reached a settlement with the SEC last May over insider trading charges.
On March 1, U.S. District Judge Tana Lin ruled that Ramani traded on material nonpublic information, violating Ishan Wahi’s job as a Coinbase manager, and notably stated that the move was done in connection with the purchase and sale of securities.
The SEC informed the court about the recent ruling, suggesting its intention to leverage the decision in its ongoing lawsuit against Coinbase. This further solidifies its stance that crypto asset trading on exchanges constitutes securities trading.
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