JPMorgan: Hinman Documents Suggest Ethereum is Not a Security

In a research report published Thursday, JPMorgan analysts said that the release of the Hinman documents in the ongoing legal battle between Ripple and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) could benefit ethereum (ETH).

The Hinman documents are a series of internal SEC emails related to a 2018 speech by former Director of Corporation Finance William Hinman, in which he said that ether did not look like a security. The emails show that senior SEC leadership agreed with Hinman’s assessment, and that the SEC acknowledged that the “fact that tokens on a sufficiently decentralized network are no longer securities creates a regulatory gap.”

JPMorgan analysts believe that the Hinman documents could explain why the SEC has not taken action against ether so far this year, while targeting other crypto tokens. They also believe that the documents could influence the direction of the ongoing US congressional effort to regulate the cryptocurrency industry in a way that allows ether to avoid being designated as a security.

The analysts wrote that “the Hinman documents are likely to strengthen ether’s case against being classified as a security, and could lead to a more decentralized network as projects seek to avoid regulatory scrutiny.”

The release of the Hinman documents has been met with mixed reactions from the crypto community. Some have welcomed the documents as a sign that the SEC is starting to take a more nuanced approach to regulating cryptocurrencies. Others have expressed concern that the documents could lead to increased regulatory scrutiny of the entire crypto industry.

Only time will tell how the Hinman documents will ultimately impact the regulation of cryptocurrencies. However, it is clear that the documents have the potential to have a significant impact on the future of ether and the entire crypto market.