SEC’s Mark Uyeda opens investigation into Bill Hinman’s 2018 speech

Mark Uyeda, acting chairman of the SEC, has officially launched a full internal review targeting past staff statements—starting with Bill Hinman’s 2018 Ether speech.

Uyeda directed agency staff on Saturday to figure out which old statements and guidance documents need to be either ripped up or rewritten to match the agency’s current goals.

One of the first pieces on the chopping block is the 2019 Framework for Investment Contract Analysis of Digital Assets, a document built on parts of Hinman’s speech.

That 2018 speech, delivered when Hinman led the Division of Corporation Finance, centered on one controversial idea: that a crypto token’s legal status depends more on how centralized the project is than how the asset was originally sold. The new SEC wants to kill or change that idea, based on findings from the Crypto Task Force and where the Commission stands today.

Uyeda orders review of multiple SEC crypto policies

Uyeda asked his staff to dig through several more statements, all connected to how the SEC has been regulating crypto for years. This includes a 2022 note from the Division of Corporation Finance that tells crypto companies how to handle disclosures during market chaos or bankruptcy events.

Uyeda also flagged a 2021 risk alert from the Division of Enforcement that warned about investor risks in crypto due to unclear rules and security threats.

Another one on the list? A 2020 memo from the Division of Trading and Markets that questions if state-chartered banks—like some in Wyoming—or trust companies could legally hold digital assets under the SEC’s Custody Rule. Uyeda wants that examined too.

He also put the spotlight on a 2021 advisory from the Division of Investment Management, which raised flags about mutual funds throwing money into Bitcoin futures. On top of that, Uyeda asked the staff to pull up a 2020 guidance note tied to how companies disclosed the effects of COVID-19 on operations.

All of this is part of a cleanup push linked to Donald Trump’s deregulation order and tips from the Department of Government Efficiency (D.O.G.E). The agency said clearly, “The purpose of this review is to identify staff statements that should be modified or rescinded consistent with current agency priorities.”

XRP lawyer calls for release of Hinman investigation report

The move by Uyeda adds fuel to a fire that’s already burning. John Deaton, a lawyer known for backing XRP holders, posted on X, calling out the SEC directly. He said :

“We need to finish cleaning up the industry with full transparency of past transgressions including the SEC releasing the IG Report related to Bill Hinman and his infamous ‘Ether Speech.’”

Deaton pointed out that Empower Oversight, an independent ethics watchdog, triggered the Inspector General investigation into Hinman’s conflicts of interest and later sued to make that report public.

The lawyer said he expects Uyeda, along with Paul Atkins, Hester Peirce, and others at the SEC, to support making the report available. He even asked crypto media like CoinDesk, Unchained Podcast, and Eleanor Terrett to find out if the SEC plans to stop hiding it.

William Hinman. Source: Wall Street Journal Magazine

The issue isn’t just the speech. It’s Hinman’s financial ties to Ethereum. While working at the SEC, Hinman was making millions through a profit-sharing deal with a law firm that represented ETH interests. Despite warnings from SEC ethics officers, he kept meeting with his former partners. One of them was tied to Canaan, a Chinese company that filed for an IPO to sell Ethereum mining hardware—a deal placed right in front of the SEC at the same time Hinman was giving ETH the green light.

Canaan’s IPO filing hit the SEC on May 15, 2018. Hinman’s speech came on June 14, 2018. On the very same day a letter from Hinman’s own Division went to his former partner in China, he also met with that same person. That’s documented.

Empower Oversight used lawsuits to force the SEC to hand over internal emails. Those messages showed multiple SEC divisions helped draft the speech—except Ethics, which was left out. Even after being warned that he was crossing financial conflict laws, Hinman moved forward anyway.

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