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The leading crypto exchange in the United States, Coinbase Global (NASDAQ: COIN) recently confronted the US SEC. For the long going tussle between the broader crypto industry and the US regulator, this time, the SEC and Coinbase are facing each other. The securities regulator had sent the crypto exchange a Wells Notice last month, for which the firm replied back.
Coinbase chief executive officer, Brian Armstrong, and chief legal officer, Paul Grewal, reportedly clarified in a public response to the SEC that the company would not be listing the crypto assets as securities amid the regulator uncertainty.
The company stated, in its formal response to the notice from the SEC, in its defense that it had not violated any securities laws.
TheCoinRepublic reported earlier that the SEC sent Wells Notice—a formal notice from an agency to inform an entity of potential regulatory action for misconduct or violation—to Coinbase in March 2023.
According to Reuters, the instance is just another one which indicates the growing tensions between the regulator and burgeoning asset class industry. The enforcement actions from the SEC increased in the recent past months where it was also seen to take the stance of considering the majority of cryptocurrencies as securities. Citing the non-compliance of crypto firms working within the nascent industry and dealing with the digital assets, the regulator seeks to grapple these entities.
Grewal called out the SEC’s sending notice to Coinbase for alleged violations as an action which did not fall under any law or regulation.
“We are on the brink of a fight that doesn’t need to happen, and frankly shouldn’t happen.”
The recent call to the SEC came after the crypto exchange went legal seeking the response from the regulator of its last year filed petition, asking for
“propose and adopt rules.” Coinbase asked for better clarity on which digital assets could fall under the definition of securities.
As reported earlier, the crypto firm filed a petition to the financial watchdog in July last year and asked for clarity on crypto regulation and extension of rule-making to the crypto industry. Citing no response from the SEC until now, Coinbase chose to take the legal route and asked the court to interfere.
Grewal informed in a Twitter post on April 15 of filing a “narrow action in the U.S Circuit Court” to make the agency respond to the petition.
The demand for clear crypto regulations is industry-wide concern. Many crypto executives and experts in the industry demand proper regulations ensuring the growth of growing space instead of strangling its development.
Andrew is a blockchain developer who developed his interest in cryptocurrencies while pursuing his post-graduation major in blockchain development. He is a keen observer of details and shares his passion for writing, along with coding. His backend knowledge about blockchain helps him give a unique perspective to his writing skills, and a reliable craft at explaining the concepts such as blockchain programming, languages and token minting. He also frequently shares technical details and performance indicators of ICOs and IDOs.
