Jesse Powell didn’t mince words when he criticized the SEC for suing his exchange, calling it the country’s “top decel.”
Kraken co-founder Jesse Powell has lashed out at the Securities and Exchange Commission
after it sued his crypto exchange for alleged securities law violations.
In a Nov. 21 post to X (formerly Twitter), Powell called the regulator “USA’s top decel” — a term used in
tech circles to insult someone who slows progress — and claimed the SEC wasn’t satisfied with the
$30 million it levied from Kraken as a settlement in February.
In a follow-up post, Powell said the SEC’s message to Kraken and other crypto firms was clear and
warned other crypto companies to leave “the US warzone” to avoid expensive legal battles.
“$30m buys you about 10 months before the SEC comes around to extort you again. Lawyers can do a lot
with $30m but the SEC knows that a real fight will likely cost $100m+, and valuable time. If you can’t
afford it, get your crypto company out of the US warzone.”
The regulator had previously charged Kraken with “failing to register the offer and sale of their crypto
asset staking-as-a-service program.” As part of its settlement, Kraken agreed to pay $30 million and
cease offering crypto-staking products and services to U.S. customers.
