The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has updated its lawsuit against Tron founder Justin Sun. The agency now argues that Sun’s extensive travel and business relationships in the United States provide the necessary basis for prosecution.
SEC is Strengthening the Case Against TRON Founder Justin Sun
The revised lawsuit seeks to establish “personal jurisdiction” over Sun, Tron and two other companies he controls. According to the SEC, these companies purposefully committed acts against the United States, making this claim a key aspect of the litigation.
During Sun’s visit to key US cities such as New York, Boston and San Francisco, he allegedly promoted and managed transactions in Tron (TRX) and BitTorrent (BTT) tokens. “Specifically, Sun spent more than 80 days in the United States in 2017, more than 120 days in the United States in 2018, and approximately 180 days in the United States in 2019,” the SEC alleges. According to the regulator, the tokens were sold to American consumers and investors as unregistered securities. In addition, the Commission accuses Sun of manipulative trading operations on the Bittrex crypto exchange, located in Seattle.
Despite this development, the price of TRX and BTT tokens barely reacted to the news. Over the past 24 hours, TRX has declined by 0.52%, while BTT has gained 2.5%.
The amendments were the SEC’s response to Sun’s attempt to dismiss the lawsuit, filed in March 2023. The crypto mogul argues that activities carried out entirely overseas by Singapore companies do not fall under the jurisdiction of the SEC.
The Respondent also emphasizes the urgent need for a clear regulatory framework. He believes that without precise rules defining when a token is a security and compliance requirement for token creators, the SEC’s regulatory reach could destabilize the global digital asset market.
To recap, the legal battle began when the SEC sued Justin Sun and the Tron Foundation for conducting an initial coin offering (ICO) of the TRX token in 2017. The lawsuit also targeted the offering and sale of BTT tokens, which were found to be illegal.
