TechFlow reported on January 2 that Coinbase's legal vice president Ryan VanGrack pointed out that over 50% of the SEC's record-breaking penalty total in 2024 came from the $4.4 billion fine in the Terraform case, but this amount may be difficult to recover. VanGrack suggested that excessive focus on enforcement statistics could create misleading incentives and recommended paying more attention to metrics showing how much has been returned to harmed investors.
Earlier, The Wall Street Journal reported that the SEC currently has approximately $10 billion in unpaid penalties, including a $62 million penalty imposed on Paul Bilzerian 31 years ago for securities fraud, which has grown to $180 million with interest—highlighting the SEC's limitations in collecting penalties.
