A Manhattan federal judge said in an opinion that cryptocurrencies are considered securities regardless of how they are sold. U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff's decision Monday complicates SEC's litigation with both Ripple and crypto exchange Coinbase. The Ripple ruling was considered a win by the industry because it said a cryptocurrency may or may not be a security depending on who's buying it. The SEC has argued in cases against Binance, Coinbase and Kraken that many cryptocurrencies listed on popular exchanges are securities. The SEC has pursued numerous other crypto firms over the alleged unregistered offer and sale of securities, including Coinbase , Gemini and Genesis.

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Persons: Hon Chang, joon, Kwon, cryptocurrencies, Jed Rakoff's, Coinbase, Rakoff, — CNBC's Lora Kolodny Organizations: UST, Securities and Exchange Commission, Terraform Labs, U.S, SEC, Binance Locations: Podgorica, Montenegro, Manhattan