The SEC asked Coinbase to stop trading everything except bitcoin (BTC)
Date: 2023-07-31 Author: Karina Ziganova Categories: BLOCKCHAIN
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has asked cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase to stop trading all cryptocurrencies except Bitcoin (BTC) before suing the platform in June. This was reported by the Financial Times on Monday, citing the head of the exchange, Brian Armstrong.
"At that point, we really didn't have a choice. The exclusion of all assets except bitcoins, which, by the way, does not comply with the law, would mean, in fact, the end of the crypto industry in the United States," he said.
According to him, the Commission appealed to Coinbase with a statement that all assets, in addition to BTC, are securities. In response, representatives of the exchange asked to refer to the relevant law.
"And they said, we're not going to explain it to you, you need to delist all assets except bitcoin," Armstrong explained.
At the same time, the SEC told the publication that its law enforcement department did not make official requests to "companies for the delisting of crypto assets."
"During the course of the investigation, staff can express their opinion on what behavior may raise questions for the Commission in accordance with securities laws," the FT notes.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on June 6 accused Coinbase of illegal activity because it failed to register as an exchange. It was also claimed that Coinbase traded at least 13 crypto assets that were supposed to be registered with the SEC. Among them are Solana (SOL), Cardano (ADA), Polygon (MATIC), Filecoin (FIL), SAND, AXS, CHZ, FLOW, ICP, NEAR, VGX, DASH, and NEXO. The regulator claims that Coinbase's staking program includes five crypto assets.
However, Armstrong said that Coinbase will continue to conduct business according to the usual rules, and trading in these assets will continue until the court decision is made. When asked about the possible exclusion or revision of the listing of the tokens mentioned in the lawsuit, the head of the platform categorically answered in the negative.
