he Securities and Exchange Commission’s suit against Binance may be spicier, but it’s a pair of court battles between the SEC and Coinbase that could determine the future of cryptocurrency trading in the U.S. And significantly, Coinbase, the nation’s largest crypto exchange, is playing offense as well as defense.
“We're prepared to rely upon the courts because we think it's critical to the future of our industry,” Coinbase Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal tells. “The one thing we can't do is continue to operate in this world of uncertainty,” he adds, with “arbitrary and capricious enforcement action as the sole means by which crypto in the U.S is regulated.”
But Coinbase’s relationship with the SEC has deteriorated as the company has become more impatient and adventurous in its offerings and the agency has dragged its feet on regulations, while becoming more crypto-skeptical. That came into sharper public view in July 2022 when Coinbase filed arequesting that the SEC start spelling out a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies, including a definition of what would make one a security, subject to the SEC’s rules.
alleged Coinbase violated securities laws by failing to register as an exchange when at least 13 of the 200 plus cryptocurrencies it lists are securities and also by offering “staking” services which should themselves have been registered as investments with the SEC.