Attorneys representing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and crypto exchange Binance asked a federal judge Friday to extend a pause in their legal battle by another 60 days, pointing to “productive discussions” underway.

World Liberty Financial, the crypto project backed by the family of U.S. President Donald Trump, added another token to its growing collection. The group bought $775,000 worth of SEI tokens this week, according to data from blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence.

The token behind real-world asset protocol Mantra lost over 90% of its value in hours late Sunday into early Monday, wiping out tens of millions in trader positions and prompting the team to accuse centralized exchanges of reckless liquidation practices.

Top stories in the Crypto Roundup today:

• SEC, Binance Seek Two-Month Pause in Ongoing Legal Battle Over Crypto Violations
• Pakistan Eyes Allocating Surplus Energy to Bitcoin Mining 
• Mantra’s OM Token Crashes 90% in Sudden Selloff as Team Blames Forced Liquidations

SEC, Binance Seek Two-Month Pause in Ongoing Legal Battle Over Crypto Violations

Attorneys representing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and crypto exchange Binance asked a federal judge Friday to extend a pause in their legal battle by another 60 days, pointing to “productive discussions” underway.

The SEC sued Binance in June 2023, accusing the global exchange and its U.S. affiliate of violating federal securities laws by operating without proper licenses and misleading investors. The complaint also alleged that Binance commingled customer funds and inflated trading volumes on Binance.US.

In February, following President Donald Trump’s return to office and the appointment of Commissioner Mark Uyeda as acting chair, the SEC requested a 60-day pause in proceedings. That pause was set to expire today.

The regulator cited the formation of a new crypto task force intended to clarify how existing securities laws apply to digital assets. According to the latest filing, that group’s work could directly affect the SEC’s position in the case.

“In light of these continued discussions and the time required for the staff to seek authorization from the Commission,” the filing states, “the SEC requested that the Defendants agree to continue the current stay for an additional 60 days.”

Trump-Linked Crypto Project Buys $775K in SEI

World Liberty Financial, the crypto project backed by the family of U.S. President Donald Trump, added another token to its growing collection. The group bought $775,000 worth of SEI tokens this week, according to data from blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence.

The purchase was made using USDC stablecoins sent from the project’s primary wallet to a separate trading wallet. That wallet has previously been used for buying various altcoins.

SEI now joins a portfolio that already includes bitcoin (BTC), ether (ETH), TRX, movement (MOVE), Ondo (ONDO) and others. Despite speculation to the contrary, the group recently pushed back on reports that it sold roughly $8 million in ETH. In a public statement, it said none of its crypto holdings had been sold.

Mantra’s OM Token Crashes 90% in Sudden Selloff as Team Blames Forced Liquidations

The token behind real-world asset protocol Mantra lost over 90% of its value in hours late Sunday into early Monday, wiping out tens of millions in trader positions and prompting the team to accuse centralized exchanges of reckless liquidation practices.

OM fell from over $6 to about $0.40 during a low-liquidity window, setting off more than $50 million in liquidations on OM-tracked futures. Open interest dropped sharply, from $345 million to $130 million, as traders exited positions en masse.

Mantra co-founder John Patrick Mullin called the selloff “a very sudden closure of account positions” and suggested that exchanges liquidated users without sufficient warning. Mullin went further, alleging “intentional market positioning taken by centralized exchanges.”

The Mantra team emphasized that the crash had no link to the protocol’s operations. “This was not our team,” the project said in a post, adding that it was investigating the event. “MANTRA is fundamentally strong.”

State of the Crypto by Top Tier Exchange Volume

Build your project with CoinDesk Data

Terms | Privacy

13 Charles II St, SW1Y 4QU

London, UK

This email may include advertisements by third parties. None of the advertised or promoted products and services have been verified or approved by us and this email is not any endorsement by us of the third party or of their products or services.