The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) charged Uniswap Labs with illegally offering leveraged cryptocurrency trading to retail investors. However, two CFTC commissioners criticized the enforcement action, and accused the agency of failing to provide proper guidance to DeFi platforms. Meanwhile, Ripple Labs wants to delay a $125 million fine payment in its SEC case, and Nvidia denied receiving an antitrust subpoena, despite reports suggesting otherwise. Additionally, Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan is still detained in Nigeria, and his bail ruling got delayed until October.
CFTC Charges Uniswap Labs
The United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) charged Uniswap Labs with illegally offering leveraged cryptocurrency trading to retail investors in the U.S. According to the CFTC’s announcement on Sept. 4, Uniswap Labs agreed to settle the charges by paying a $175,000 civil penalty and to stop violating the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA).
Ian McGinley, the CFTC’s director of enforcement warned DeFi operators to make sure their transactions comply with the law. However, not all CFTC commissioners agreed with the enforcement approach.
Summer Mersinger, one of the five commissioners, criticized the agency’s handling of the case, and accused it of engaging in “regulation through enforcement.” She is also disappointed that the CFTC did not provide clearer rulemaking or guidance for DeFi protocols. Mersinger pointed out that Uniswap already stopped trading the specific leveraged tokens that triggered the charges, including the BTC 2x Flexible Leverage Index token (BTC2XFLI) and the ETH 2x Flexible Leverage Index token (ETH2XFLI).
Summer Mersinger’s dissenting statement (Source: CFTC)
Another CFTC Commissioner Caroline Pham is also not happy, and argued that the enforcement action violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) by making sweeping interpretations in a settlement order without proper rulemaking. Pham also questioned some of the evidence that was used to charge Uniswap, and believes that the decision seemed based solely on the word "leveraged" appearing in the names of certain tokens.
The CFTC typically regulates commodity derivatives products and does not oversee spot commodity markets or securities. However, it asserted its jurisdiction over the leveraged tokens offered on Uniswap by identifying them as “leveraged or margined commodity transactions.” Although the issuer of the tokens was not named, the CFTC’s order indicated that they appear to have been created by Index Coop, a DeFi protocol that is focused on leveraged yield strategies.
The case came at a time when there is growing regulatory scrutiny of DeFi platforms. SEC Chair Gary Gensler even argued that most digital assets qualify as securities under U.S. law. In April, the SEC accused Uniswap of operating an unregistered securities exchange. In response, Uniswap described itself as a software company that reimagines market structures, rather than a securities exchange.
Ripple Moves to Delay Fine Payment in SEC Case
In other legal news, Ripple Labs’ legal team has requested a stay on the monetary portion of a judgment requiring the company to pay $125 million as part of its ongoing case with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The request was filed on Sept. 4 in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York.
It seeks to delay payment while Ripple places 111% of the judgment amount, which is around $139 million, into a bank account until 30 days after the time of appeal expires or after the resolution of any appeal. The SEC reportedly agreed to this request, which hints at a potential appeal by the regulator.
Ripple executives praised the Aug. 7 judgment, and CEO Brad Garlinghouse even called it a “victory for Ripple.” Chief legal officer Stuart Alderoty also confirmed that the company is committed to respecting the $125 million fine. However, the case may continue if the SEC decides to appeal. Judge Analisa Torres, who is overseeing the case, has not yet approved the request for a stay.
The legal battle between the SEC and Ripple started in December of 2020, when the SEC accused Ripple of using XRP as an unregistered security to raise funds. Initially, the complaint targeted both Garlinghouse and Ripple executive chair Chris Larsen. In July of 2023, Judge Torres ruled that XRP was not a security in the context of programmatic sales on exchanges.
Nvidia Denies Antitrust Subpoena
There was also recently some speculation that Nvidia may find itself in legal hot water. However, Nvidia denied receiving an antitrust subpoena from the United States Justice Department, despite a report suggesting otherwise.
A spokesperson for Nvidia stated that the company inquired with the Department of Justice and confirmed they had not been subpoenaed. However, Nvidia mentioned that it is willing to cooperate with regulators if needed.
The denial came after reports that the Justice Department was investigating Nvidia’s business practices, including allegations of bundling hardware in a way that could make it difficult for businesses to switch to other chip manufacturers. A Bloomberg report on Sept. 3 claimed that Nvidia had been subpoenaed, which then sparked concerns about a potential antitrust investigation. The report also suggested that Nvidia may have penalized buyers who did not exclusively use its artificial intelligence suite.
Bloomberg's report on Nvidia (Source: Bloomberg)
The initial report caused a big drop in Nvidia's market value. In fact, it wiped out $278 billion in capitalization and caused the stock to drop by 9.5% on Tuesday. After Nvidia’s denial of the subpoena, the stock saw a slight recovery, rising by 0.46% in after-hours trading.
Despite the recent volatility, Nvidia’s stock is still up by close to 120% for the year, driven by increased demand for its chips in artificial intelligence applications. The company also reached an all-time high of $131.88 in June.
Unfortunately, Nvidia is also facing a potential revived class-action lawsuit in the US Supreme Court, which alleges that the company concealed over $1 billion in GPU sales to cryptocurrency miners. CEO Jensen Huang is accused of downplaying the company’s sales to the sector.
Gambaryan’s Bail Ruling Deferred
Tigran Gambaryan, Binance’s head of financial crime compliance, has been detained in Nigeria since February and may not be eligible for bail until October after another delay in his case. A family spokesperson confirmed on Sept. 4 that the ruling on Gambaryan’s bail application has been pushed to Oct. 9.
Gambaryan was initially charged with tax evasion and money laundering by Nigerian authorities. His family, including his wife Yuki, is extremely concerned over his deteriorating health while in custody. A video from a Sept. 2 court appearance showed Gambaryan struggling to walk with no assistance from guards.
Gambaryan’s legal team requested his release on bail, mainly due to the inadequate treatment of his health issues while in prison. He has been held in Nigeria for over six months.
As a U.S. citizen and former IRS special agent, his detention has prompted calls for his release from lawmakers and crypto industry leaders. A petition launched by his wife to bring him back to the U.S. has already gathered more than 5,400 signatures.
The case is part of a broader crackdown on tech and crypto executives in 2024. In August, French authorities arrested Telegram CEO Pavel Durov, and charged him with money laundering and cryptology-related offenses. Another Binance executive, Nadeem Anjarwalla, was also detained with Gambaryan, but then fled to Kenya.
