LBRY Appeals SEC Ruling Amid Recent Industry Wins

Blockchain-based file-sharing and payment platform LBRY seems to be reconsidering its earlier decision to shut down, as it has recently filed an appeal against a federal court ruling that favored the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). On September 7, LBRY filed the notice with the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, seeking to challenge the final judgment delivered on July 11, 2023. This ruling had imposed a civil fine on LBRY and prohibited it from taking part in unregistered crypto asset securities offerings going forward.

Initially, the SEC had sued LBRY, Inc. back in March 2021, alleging that its LBRY Credit token (LBC) constituted a security under the 1933 Securities Act. On November 7, the U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire sided with the SEC, barring LBRY from offering unregistered crypto assets and levying a $111,614 fine.

Though the SEC originally pushed for a $22 million penalty, it later reduced the amount, acknowledging that the company could not afford to pay such a hefty sum. In January, LBRY’s founder and CEO Jeremy Kauffman had told Cointelegraph that LBRY was “almost certainly dead” as a company.

However, LBRY’s recent appeal suggests a possible change in direction. This move comes against the backdrop of several other notable wins for the crypto industry in cases against the SEC, including Ripple and Grayscale.

As of the time of reporting, LBRY had not yet responded to request for additional comments.