The question of whether Ethereum is a commodity or a security has been on the agenda for years. Now JPMorgan has joined this discussion as well. What did he say about Ethereum? Let’s look at the details.
Ethereum approach
JPMorgan says that Ethereum ETH must fall under a new category to be isolated from over-regulation. It also emphasizes that it should be classified as a commodity. In a research note Thursday, JPMorgan strategist Nikolaos Panigirtzgolou made the statement. Accordingly, he said that regulating Ethereum (ETH) as an alternative asset would be a middle ground between commodity and securities regulatory regimes. Strategists argue that the uncertainty around Ethereum has prevented the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) from including it in the list of crypto assets it considers as securities. The institution revised its previous list in recent lawsuits against Binance and Coinbase.
SEC documents in 2018 stated that Ethereum is not the subject of a regulatory body because it is not decentralized enough. Therefore, Ethereum did not fit the definition of a security according to the Howey Test. Republican representative Patrick McHenry admitted last year that cryptocurrencies cannot be classified as commodities or securities.
Saylor argues ETH cannot be a commodity
The legislator then proposed a third regulator. McHenry chairs the House Financial Services Committee, which aims to change existing laws to include stablecoins. Coinbase also proposed a new regulator in 2021. The SEC has requested an extension to respond to Coinbase’s petition asking if the agency will issue new crypto regulations. Senators Cynthia Lummis and Kirsten Gillibrand argue that Ethereum ETH is a commodity. They argue that an organization should register the token with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission rather than the SEC.
The views for Ethereum are endless. On the other hand, Bitcoin bull Michael Saylor states that Ethereum’s initial coin supply, management team, and hard forks have proven mutable. He argues that this naturally makes it a commodity for Ethereum. According to him, a commodity can neither change its properties nor have an issuer. According to the head of MicroStrategy, the token passes the Howey Test if developers can change the token’s issuance model through code changes. Accordingly, the token is a security. SEC Chairman Gary Gensler argues in an interview with New York Magazine that all cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin are securities. When we look at Kriptokoin.com, we see that a debate that has been going on for years has not been resolved. In fact, what happened is a matter of regulation. How logical would it be to interpret current developments with a law 80 years ago? This is the most important dilemma for America. On the other hand, it should be noted that most of the blockchain companies are in America.
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