SEC Wins Injunction Against Binance, Freezing U.S. Assets and Tightening American Trading
SEC Slams Binance With Injunction Win
The SEC just won a preliminary injunction against Binance that keeps the exchange’s U.S. assets frozen and its trading platform largely shut for American customers. The ruling signals that federal regulators still hold the upper hand in deciding which digital assets count as securities and how exchanges must treat them. Markets now face a clearer line in the sand: comply or stay out.
The lawsuit began in June 2023 when the SEC accused Binance and its founder Changpeng Zhao of running an unregistered exchange, offering unregistered securities, and mishandling customer funds. Binance fought back with a motion to dismiss, arguing the SEC lacked authority over most tokens and that its global structure kept it beyond U.S. reach. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson rejected those claims in a 103-page opinion, finding the agency had shown a likelihood of success on key counts and that continued operations posed irreparable harm to investors.
The court granted the SEC’s request for a preliminary injunction, freezing Binance.US customer assets held in the U.S., ordering the preservation of trading records, and barring the platform from onboarding new U.S. users. The judge stopped short of a total shutdown, allowing limited “wind-down” trading for existing customers under strict oversight. Binance can still operate overseas, but the ruling effectively severs the U.S. market unless the firm registers or wins on appeal.
In plain terms, the decision cements the SEC’s view that many tokens function like investment contracts and therefore fall under securities law. Exchanges ignoring registration now risk asset freezes and injunctions before a full trial. The ruling also pressures stablecoin issuers and DeFi protocols that route U.S. liquidity through offshore entities, because the court signaled that targeting customer funds inside the U.S. is enough to establish jurisdiction.
For crypto markets the message is blunt: expect tighter gatekeeping at
