(Opinion) Despite What Others May Say, the Hinman Emails are Not Good for ETH

I saw an article floating around today that claimed the Hinman emails were good for Ethereum since they showed that the network was sufficiently decentralized and therefore not a security.

As someone who has actually read the emails, this couldn’t be more wrong. The emails show that the SEC thought Ethereum was a security, but it was Bill Hinman who disagreed since Ethereum was “sufficiently decentralized”…while giving no explanation to what that means.

In later emails several SEC officials point out that this would cause confusion and is not apart of the Howey test…and strongly advised him not to name drop Ethereum as it could hurt them in future litigation if the SEC officially declared it a security.

He ignored all of this advice and gave an infamous speech declaring Ethereum to not be a security since it was “sufficiently decentralized ” that was personally reviewed by Vitalik.

After leaving the SEC he then went to work for a firm associated with Ethereum, but not before dropping a lawsuit against Ripple since they were arguably Ethereun’s biggest competitor at the time.

My Interpretation:

This shows blatant corruption and picking of winners/losers in the SEC. Bill Hinman went out of his way to declare Ethereum was not a security and most likely profited off of it. This could spell trouble for Ethereum if Gary Gensler wants to save face and declare Ethereum a security. We’ve already heard him say one board member or chairmen’s comments do not reflect the options of the SEC. It’s possible Congress also takes action.

I encourage everyone to read the Hinman emails and come up with your own conclusion. My takeaway is ETH isn’t safe from future litigation and there’s something fishy going on behind the scenes. (JPM?)