Lawyers for crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have jointly requested a stay in the regulatory proceedings against Sun. This filing, made on Wednesday, seeks to pause the case while both parties explore a potential resolution. Both parties have agreed that no one would be prejudiced by the stay, with the SEC and Sun’s legal team indicating mutual interest in putting the matter on hold.
This request follows a similar pause in proceedings involving Binance Holdings Ltd. and is part of a broader shift in the regulatory landscape for digital assets in the United States, especially since the inauguration of President Donald Trump. During his campaign, Trump had promised to make the US “the crypto capital of the planet,” a position that appears to be influencing recent developments in crypto regulation.
Neither Sun nor the SEC has commented on the request for the stay.
Under the leadership of acting SEC chair Mark Uyeda, the SEC has shifted its approach toward the crypto industry. Notably, the agency has closed investigations into several major players, including Robinhood Markets Inc., Uniswap, and OpenSea. The SEC also dropped its lawsuit against Coinbase Global Inc., pending commissioner approval.
In January, Uyeda introduced the creation of a crypto-focused task force separate from the enforcement division, calling the initiative “Crypto 2.0.” This initiative is designed to build a clearer regulatory framework for digital assets. In contrast, former SEC chair Gary Gensler had initiated multiple penalties and lawsuits against various crypto firms, prompting a backlash from the crypto community upon his resignation.
Sun, who was sued by the SEC in 2023, faced allegations that he collaborated with his companies—the Tron Foundation, BitTorrent Foundation, and Rainberry Inc.—to offer and sell unregistered securities. Sun has also made headlines for his investments, including a $75 million stake in World Liberty Financial, one of Trump’s crypto ventures.
Critics, including Corey Frayer, director of investor protection at the Consumer Federation of America, suggest that the changes in the SEC’s approach under Trump’s influence could be a politically charged shift, particularly given Sun’s connections to Trump-linked projects.
Sun’s high-profile purchase of a Maurizio Cattelan sculpture for $6.2 million, as well as his participation in Hong Kong’s Consensus crypto conference, further underscore his continued prominence in the crypto space, even as regulatory actions shift.
As the crypto industry continues to navigate regulatory uncertainties, the request for a stay marks another key moment in the evolving intersection of government oversight and the digital assets market.
