No Proof of Ethereum Bribing SEC Against XRP

Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson has once again commented on the drafts of William Hinman’s controversial speech on cryptocurrency.

In a recent AMA session, Hoskinson asserted that the activities leading up to Hinman’s speech do not prove corruption but favoritism.

Charles says the #HinmanEmails did not prove corruption, just favoritism.#ETHGate @StevenNerayoff pic.twitter.com/93WfI5u6wP

— wEeZiE {X}💭FireGaryGensler (@NerdNationUnbox) October 10, 2023

Hoskinson pointed out the importance of the speech, as he believes the drafts helped expose the SEC’s thought process.

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Controversy Surrounding Hinman Docs 

Recall that Ripple Labs released Hinman’s documents in June after a multi-year legal battle. The documents revealed vital events leading up to the speech that saw Hinman declare BTC and ETH as non-securities.

Notably, the document showed that Hinman, who was director of SEC’s Corporation Finance, met with Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin a week before the speech.

These events resulted in speculations that the Ethereum team bribed Hinman to give ETH a free pass. However, Hoskinson said the incidents leading up to the speech did not prove any corruption.

Hoskinson Comments on ETHGate

Hoskinson made this known while responding to questions about his thoughts on ETHGate, a theory alleging that Ethereum officials established relationships with top officials at the SEC to ensure favorable regulation for ETH.

Regarding the ETHGate theory, Hoskinson said the crypto community has been talking about two separate things.

On the one hand, Hoskinson said the theory involves the allegation that Ethereum officials used connections, relationships, or money to convince insiders at the SEC to “go easy” on ETH.

However, he said some XRP community members speculate that the ETHGate theory involves the Ethereum team bribing some SEC officials to go after XRP and Rupple.

“These are very different things. It is one thing to use relationships to protect your own thing. It is another thing to use relationships in a conspiracy to attack a competitor,” Hoskinson remarked.

No Evidence to Show Ethereum Bribed SEC to Attack XRP

Per Hoskinson, no evidence supports claims that Ethereum officials bribed the SEC to attack XRP.

“You have yet to give any evidence whatsoever that a single meeting has happened where someone from Ethereum bribed or gave money or convinced a member of the SEC to go after XRP,” said Hoskinson, a co-founder of Ethereum.

XRP Community Call Out Hoskinson 

Last year, XRP community members criticized Hoskinson for describing their claims as a grand conspiracy. Expectedly, his recent remarks have also infuriated the community as members took to X (formerly Twitter) to call him out.

@IOHK_Charles is losing credibility when he says it’s favoritism not corruption. Well Charles favoritism for one and going after another is corruption no matter which way you slice it.

— 🇺🇸XRP — Jason Jude (@UnionOperator) October 10, 2023

Meanwhile, Hoskinson recently denied his involvement in the Hinman’s speech scandal, stating that he left Ethereum four years before the controversial remark.