The question of whether Coinbase is regulated by the SEC is off the table today. Especially in view of how much news is related to the proceedings between the exchange and the regulator. Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is in the spotlight because of allegations of insider trading, but they aren’t the only ones under scrutiny. The SEC is also facing a backlash for failing to regulate the digital asset sector and prevent such misconduct. Against this backdrop, the conflict between Coinbase and the SEC has become the center of attention. 

Coinbase SEC investigation

Coinbase SEC disclosure is constantly in the news. Coinbase is currently experiencing regulatory difficulties. The Coinbase SEC annual report released this week says that the SEC is investigating the company for selling digital assets that should have been registered as securities. This circumstance has caused its stock price to plummet. Katie Wood has abandoned her position in the company’s stock. 

This news hurts Coinbase because the company has remained on the side of regulators since its founding. Bloomberg’s Max Chafkin lays the blame on Coinbase’s rash decision several years ago to “turn to shitcoins. A familiar term in the crypto world, shitcoins usually refer to digital tokens that have no apparent utility beyond speculative advertising.

Coinbase spent years building its reputation, but then squandered it all on “shitcoins.” This led to Coinbase SEC class actions. This included promoting new Dogecoin coins to small and unsophisticated investors, many of whom suffered losses of 80% or more. As a result, the SEC cracked down on Coinbase. Meanwhile, the decision to add shitcoins also opened the door to a fraudulent insider trading scheme by a Coinbase manager.

SEC Liability

It’s easy to blame Coinbase executives for this situation, but the main blame lies with the SEC. The situation has gotten much worse under current SEC Chairman Gary Gensler. Gensler is a non-lawyer and has used his position to boost his credibility with the Democratic Party.

In doing so, Gensler has sought to hit major companies such as Coinbase, which has largely followed the rules, allowing the worst players to get out of control. Two of the biggest cryptocurrency crashes this year-the collapse of Terra, a Ponzi scheme-like project, and the bankruptcy of lender Celsius-occurred in front of Gensler, and the SEC could not intervene in time. As a result, small investors are losing billions of dollars.

Coinbase sued by SEC – what came of it?

How did the SEC investigation into Coinbase, which like all such investigations is supposed to be secret before charges are filed, even end up in the media? Some experts on Twitter have suggested that Gensler leaked the investigation to Bloomberg to punish Coinbase, which has publicly complained about the SEC’s behavior. An experienced crypto lawyer familiar with the customs of Washington, D.C., says this is almost certainly true, and adds that there are traces of Gensler in earlier leaks to the Wall Street Journal.

The SEC has also been criticized for the amateurism of high-ranking officials who leave the agency to cash in on private law firms. The most egregious example is laid out in a new revelation that shows how a lack of oversight allowed former SEC lawyers to use their connections at the agency to play up the whistleblower program and make themselves tens of millions of dollars.

Gensler may want to get his house in order before torturing the likes of Coinbase. Specifically, he should stop political machinations and create a structure to help crypto and blockchain, one of the most important technologies of this century, flourish on America’s shores.

It’s unlikely he’ll do that, but it may not matter. The debate about how to regulate cryptocurrency is moving beyond the SEC to other agencies, including the CFTC, which has recognized the importance of innovation as well as protecting consumers from harm. 

The bottom line is that shitcoins got Coinbase in trouble with the SEC, but looking at the aftermath of the shitcoins boom, it is the SEC that has the most to explain its inaction.