Jason Foster, founder of Empower Surveillance Whistleblower & Research (Empowr), revealed that the nonprofit has obtained a SEC crypto dispute report on former senior official William Hinman.
The Office of Inspectors (OIG), an independent office within the highly influential regulator, has not found any criminal offences.
OIG determined that Hinman’s infamous 2018 speech was not security and did not violate the agency’s ethics rules.
According to OIG, the speech had no “direct and predictable” impact on Hinman’s economic benefits.
Hinman left Simpson Tacher & Bartlett, a 16-year Whiteshe law firm, in May 2017, to join the SEC. Hinman is said to have had a direct financial interest in classifying Ether as non-security, as STB is a member of the Ethereum Alliance, and as a member of the Etherium Alliance.
The OIG found no evidence that contradicted Hinman’s statement that the STB was not involved in issues involved. Additionally, he did not own the code, according to his 2021 testimony.
The highly controversial speech was “cooperatively drafted,” meaning that Hinman did not actually represent his own views. The IOG highlights that multiple offices and departments have participated in the drafting process. “The decision to mention ether in his speech was equally cooperative,” the report said.
Empower Surveillance criticizes the report, saying it focuses narrowly on evidence of criminal conflict.
Discover more from Earlybirds Invest
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
