The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) agreed to dismiss its lawsuit against Cumberland DRW. The regulatory authority filed the suit in October, claiming Cumberland DRW operated as an unregistered securities dealer.
The SEC dismissed its suit against Chicago-based Cumberland DRW, a crypto trading firm. The firm said they had signed a joint filing with the SEC to drop the suit.
SEC agrees to dismiss suit against Cumberland DRW
Cumberland revealed that the joint filing was agreed upon in principle between the crypto firm and the SEC staff on February 20. The company added that the filing only awaited the agency’s approval for dismissal. In its latest announcement, the firm confirmed that the agency approved the filing, and the SEC dismissed its suit against it.
Today we signed a joint filing to be made with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) dismissing its case against Cumberland DRW. The filing was agreed in principle between Cumberland DRW and SEC staff on February 20 and is currently pending Commission approval. As a firm…
— Cumberland (@CumberlandSays) March 4, 2025
The crypto firm highlighted its commitment to the principles of integrity and transparency. It added that it looked forward to continuing its dialogue with the SEC. The firm said the conversation would help create a future where technological advancements and regulatory clarity went hand in hand. It noted that this would help the United States remain at the forefront of global financial innovation.
The SEC filed a suit against Cumberland in October, claiming it operated as an unregistered securities dealer. The regulatory body added that the firm handled over $2 billion in crypto assets and bought and sold cryptocurrencies deemed securities. The regulator pointed out that five of the tokens Cumberland handled were securities. It listed them in the court pleadings as Solana, Algorand, Filecoin, Polygon, and Cosmos.
The U.S. SEC sought a permanent injunction against the firm from continuing its operations as a security dealer. It also prayed for disgorgement of ill-gotten gains and prejudgement interest. The regulator also sought civil penalties, such as special and general damages, against Cumberland.
Cumberland responded to the claims, saying it was registered as a dealer broker in 2019. The firm noted that the suit was unfair since it had engaged in good-faith discussions with the regulator for five years. The firm commented that it was the latest target of the SEC’s enforcement “first approach to stifling innovation.”
The Cumberland lawsuit dismissal is the latest crypto-related suit withdrawal by the U.S. SEC. The commission dropped cases against exchanges such as Kraken and Coinbase. The regulatory body also dropped its suit against crypto firm Consensys.
Kraken commented on its suit dismissal, saying it was never about protecting investors. It added that its suit and other crypto-related cases filed against exchanges caused more confusion in the industry than clarification. The exchange added that the suits undermined a new sector, which repeatedly asked for clear enforcement laws.
The regulator also announced it had dropped its investigation into non-fungible token companies such as OpenSea and Yuga Labs and revealed it had dropped its suit against Gemini and Uniswap Labs.
The SEC acting Chair commented on the recent dismissal of lawsuits against crypto companies. He highlighted that the commission needed to change its approach and develop a clear crypto policy.
Coinbase chief legal officer Paul Grewal said he had requested information from the SEC under the Freedom of Information Act. He said the request would determine the number of investigations and lawsuits brought against crypto firms between 2021 and 2025.
He added that the company would also inquire about how many third-party contractors were used and how much the enforcement actions cost. The legal officer explained that the regulators’ actions cost American citizens their jobs and taxpayer dollars.
Grewal said they wanted to know more about the crypto assets and cyber unit within the SEC enforcement division. He added that he wanted to know their budget and how many employees worked on it.
The SEC voluntarily dropped its case against Coinbase with prejudice to end all litigation against the company after Trump’s inauguration and Gary Gensler’s exit from the SEC.
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