The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charges Cumberland DRW as an unregistered securities dealer. Cumberland fervently denies these accusations.

The core of the SEC’s suit is whether most crypto transactions are bound by securities law, a critical issue for the future of industry regulation.

Cumberland: Unregistered Securities Dealer?

Cumberland, a DRW-based crypto market maker, faces SEC charges for operating as an unregistered dealer in the crypto space. The SEC charged Cumberland with performing these services since March 2018 and selling more than $2 billion in unregistered transactions. In response, the firm published a furious statement:

“Today we became the latest target of the SEC’s enforcement-first approach to stifling innovation and preventing legitimate companies from engaging in digital assets. We are not making any changes to our business operations…as a result of this action by the SEC,” it read.

Read More: Who Is Gary Gensler? Everything To Know About the SEC Chairman

Cumberland was wholly combative in its tone. It mentioned a recent House Financial Services Committee meeting in which the SEC was called a “rogue agency,” suggesting the SEC overstepped its authority. Additionally, it described a history of Cumberland’s efforts to meet compliance and even previous spats with SEC Chair Gary Gensler.

Cumberland’s righteous indignation looks justified, given the circumstances. The firm has had a long history in the space, and claimed it registered as a broker-dealer in 2019. However, Cumberland alleges that the SEC claimed it could only legally trade Bitcoin or Ethereum, which are under the CFTC’s looser jurisdiction.

In other words, Cumberland called the SEC’s pleas to register a “Catch-22” and a “mirage.” It shared data and access with the SEC over the years, but the agency suddenly accused them of a six-year spree of finance crimes. This mirrors a similar situation two days ago when the SEC sent a Wells Notice to Crypto.com.

Read More: What Does It Mean To Receive a Wells Notice From the SEC?

Crypto.com was also combative in responding to the SEC, preemptively suing the agency before it could file charges. It accused the SEC of “regulation by enforcement,” and claimed that the SEC acted from desperation against a growing bipartisan pro-crypto consensus. Gensler seems to believe that most crypto asset transactions are securities, and that’s simply unworkable.

The text of the SEC’s charges against Cumberland makes little mention of specific unregistered securities transactions and leans on the idea that the industry is wrong to describe the majority of crypto assets as commodities. Crypto.com described this legal precedent as a battle for crypto’s future.

Bitcoin price extended losses and traded below the $60,000 zone. BTC is now attempting a recovery wave and facing hurdles near $60,800.

• Bitcoin is struggling to start a fresh increase above the $61,200 zone.
• The price is trading below $61,000 and the 100 hourly Simple moving average.
• There is a key bearish trend line forming with resistance at $60,800 on the hourly chart of the BTC/USD pair (data feed from Kraken).
• The pair could struggle to recover if it stays below the $62,000 resistance zone.

Bitcoin Price Falls Again

Bitcoin price failed to start a fresh increase above $62,000 and started a fresh decline. BTC traded below the $61,500 and $60,500 levels. It even broke the $60,000 support.

A low was formed at $58,888 and the price is now consolidating losses. There was a minor increase above the $60,000 level. The price was able to climb above the 23.6% Fib retracement level of the downward move from the $64,420 swing high to the $58,888 low.

Bitcoin price is now trading below $61,000 and the 100 hourly Simple moving average. On the upside, the price could face resistance near the $60,800 level. There is also a key bearish trend line forming with resistance at $60,800 on the hourly chart of the BTC/USD pair.

The first key resistance is near the $61,650 level or the 50% Fib retracement level of the downward move from the $64,420 swing high to the $58,888 low. A clear move above the $61,650 resistance might send the price higher. The next key resistance could be $62,000.

A close above the $62,000 resistance might initiate more gains. In the stated case, the price could rise and test the $63,200 resistance level. Any more gains might send the price toward the $64,000 resistance level.

More Downsides In BTC?

If Bitcoin fails to rise above the $60,800 resistance zone, it could start another decline. Immediate support on the downside is near the $59,600 level.

The first major support is near the $58,850 level. The next support is now near the $58,500 zone. Any more losses might send the price toward the $57,200 support in the near term.

Technical indicators:

Hourly MACD – The MACD is now losing pace in the bearish zone.

Hourly RSI (Relative Strength Index) – The RSI for BTC/USD is now below the 50 level.

Major Support Levels – $59,600, followed by $58,850.

Major Resistance Levels – $60,800, and $61,650.

The meme coin market is experiencing a resurgence. Over the past month, the sector’s capitalization has grown by 24%, indicating a spike in trading activity. 

This general rally is driving an interest in frog-themed PEPE, which has seen a gradual spike in demand. The popular meme coin currently trades at $0.0000092, noting a 4% uptick over the past week. 

Pepe Sees Renewed Interest

PEPE’s price daily active address (DAA) divergence has steadily increased, suggesting growing accumulation among market participants. At press time, the metric’s value stands at 35.16%.

DAA compares an asset’s dynamics with the changes in its number of daily active addresses. Investors use it to track whether network activity supports the price movements. A rising, positive value suggests that an increasing number of unique addresses are becoming active on the network and trading the asset. 

Read more: Pepe (PEPE) Price Prediction 2024/2025/2030

PEPE’s gradual price rally over the past week, combined with its positive daily active address (DAA) divergence, is a bullish indicator of growing interest in the coin and confirms market demand for the meme coin.

Additionally, PEPE’s Mean Coin Age has been on the rise, currently sitting at 31.44, reflecting a 2% increase over the past two days. This metric tracks the average age of coins in circulation, measuring how long they have been held without being moved or spent.

An increase in Mean Coin Age signals network-wide accumulation, indicating that investors are confident in PEPE’s future value and are choosing to hold rather than sell.

PEPE Price Prediction: Meme Coin Sets Sight on $0.000010

The continued preference for accumulation over distribution by PEPE holders is likely to sustain its upward trend. If the bullish sentiment surrounding the meme coin intensifies, its price could rise toward the next major resistance at $0.000010.

Read more: 5 Best Pepe (PEPE) Wallets for Beginners and Experienced Users

However, this outlook would be invalidated if buying pressure diminishes. In that case, PEPE’s price could lose its recent gains and drop to $0.0000083.