DeFi Giant Uniswap Faces SEC Lawsuit: Founder Vows To Fight For 'Freedom'

Hayden Adams, founder of decentralized exchange Uniswap UNI/USD, revealed on Wednesday that the exchange has been served a Wells notice by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

What Happened: He vowed to fight against the financial watchdog, asserting that instead of protecting investors, the commission was letting bad actors slip by.

“I’m not surprised,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter), saying he is “just annoyed, disappointed, and ready to fight.”

Adams emphasized his belief in the legality of Uniswap’s operations and accused the SEC of targeting reputable industry players while neglecting others.

“It's been clear for a while that rather than working to create clear, informed rules, the SEC has decided to focus on attacking long-time good actors like Uniswap and Coinbase. All while letting bad actors like FTX slip by,” he added.

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Uniswap, which was conceptualized as an experiment in radically decentralized, fully automated on-chain markets, has grown significantly since its inception.

“Fast forward to today, the Uniswap Protocol has processed over $2 trillion in volume,” Adams noted, underscoring the platform’s impact on the financial technology landscape.

Adams’s grievances reflect a common sentiment among crypto entrepreneurs who believe the SEC’s current regulatory approach is insufficiently transparent and disproportionately punitive towards innovative companies.

“The SEC's mission is protecting investors, maintaining fair, orderly, and efficient markets, and facilitating capital formation,” said Adams.

He argued that Uniswap excels in these areas more effectively than the SEC itself.

He finished his post, which at the time of writing neared one million views on X, with the words, “I think freedom is worth fighting for. I think DeFi is worth fighting for.”

What’s Next: The conflict with the SEC arises amid broader discussions about the future of digital assets, a topic set to be explored at Benzinga’s Future of Digital Assets event on Nov. 19.

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