Conspiracy theory or one of the biggest scandals in crypto? The term “ETH Gate” has been on the lips of every XRP supporter in recent months and, increasingly, the broader cryptocurrency community. At the heart of this issue is the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) decision to classify Ethereum (ETH) as a non-security, contrasting sharply with its ongoing legal action against Ripple and the XRP token.
What is ETH Gate
“ETH Gate” refers to a theory alleging that the Ethereum Foundation and ConsenSys have fostered close relationships with key individuals within the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and other entities like JP Morgan, thereby ensuring a favorable regulatory environment for Ethereum.
One cornerstone of this theory are the Hinman emails which were released earlier this year. In these emails, Hinman, who made the landmark speech in 2018 declaring that Ethereum was not a security, interacted with Ethereum’s co-founder, Vitalik Buterin right before the speech. Hinman reportedly consulted Buterin to “understand the operational dynamics of Ethereum.”
Remarkably, Bill Hinman rejoined the law firm Simpson Thacher in 2020 after leaving the SEC. The significance? Simpson Thacher is associated with the Ethereum Enterprise Alliance. Therefore, the XRP army believes that Hinman’s decision to deliver a speech giving Ethereum a regulatory “free pass” may not have been impartial.
Speculations By XRP Army
John E Deaton, an outspoken figure in the XRP community and a keen observer of the SEC’s dealings, has painstakingly put forth allegations suggesting a deeper web of interlinked relationships that hint at possible conflicts of interest. (There are so many that it is not even possible to highlight them all in one article.) His assertions have become pivotal in the “ETH Gate” theory, and here we’ll delve deeper into these connections.
1. Joseph Lubin’s Strategic Moves: Joseph Lubin, co-founder of Ethereum and founder of ConsenSys, is at the core of Deaton’s claims. According to Deaton, within just two months of Jay Clayton’s appointment as the SEC Chairman, Lubin made a potentially strategic hire, bringing on board Patrick Berarducci from the law firm Sullivan & Cromwell. This move is seen by Deaton and many in the XRP community as more than coincidental.
Deaton has drawn attention to this connection in the past, positing that it might have provided Ethereum an inside…
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