Coinbase Vs SEC: SEC Asked Coinbase to Suspend All Crypto Trading Except BTC Before Lawsuit

The post Coinbase Vs SEC: SEC Asked Coinbase to Suspend All Crypto Trading Except BTC Before Lawsuit appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News

A recent detail has come to light concerning the legal saga between the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the largest US-based crypto exchange Coinbase. Apparently, as per a recent report by the Financial Times, the agency demanded that the company should suspend the trading of all cryptocurrencies except for Bitcoin.

SEC’s Wide-Reaching Arm

Talking to the Financial Times, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong revealed that the SEC’s request came before the legal tussle ensued last month, due to Coinbase’s failure to register as a broker. The regulatory body scrutinized 13 cryptocurrencies on Coinbase’s platform, most of them having low trading volumes. 

The SEC claimed these digital assets as securities, implying that by making them available to consumers, the exchange automatically falls under the purview of the regulatory watchdog.

This directive to de-list all but Bitcoin of the 200-plus tokens listed on Coinbase signals the SEC’s intent to cast a wider regulatory net on the crypto industry under the leadership of the infamous Gary Gensler.

“They asserted that every asset apart from Bitcoin is a security,” Armstrong explained. However, the logic behind this classification remained undisclosed, leaving Coinbase in a quandary over its compliance with the SEC’s unexplained law interpretation.

The Aftermath: To Comply or Defy

Should Coinbase have acquiesced, this would have carved out a normative precedent, potentially leaving a significant majority of American crypto businesses unlawfully operating unless registered with the SEC.

Armstrong defended his firm’s decision to defy the SEC’s order. He stated that complying by de-listing all assets except Bitcoin – an act not mandated by law – would essentially wipe out the crypto industry within the US. The choice seemed straightforward to Armstrong – seek legal clarity on the issue. As he succinctly put it, “Let’s go to court and find out what the court says.”