From the complaint:
- SEC says Coinbase has operated as an unregistered broker since at least 2019
- Crypto assets that Coinbase makes available put Coinbase’s operatings ‘squarely within the purview of the securities laws’
- Coinbase’s staking program includes five stakeable crypto assets, makign the staking program an investment contract and therefore a security
- Coinbase has never registered as a broker, evaidign the disclosure scheme for securities markets
- Full complaint
Yesterday, the regulators came for Binance and today it’s Coinbase. Everyone in the forex market saw this years ago; when the regulators come, they leave with body bags.
Shares of COIN are down 15.2% premarket on the news.
“The Coinbase Platform merges three functions that are typically separated in traditional securities markets—those of brokers, exchanges, and clearing agencies. Yet, Coinbase has never registered with the SEC as a broker, national securities exchange, or clearing agency while paying lip service to its desire to comply with applicable laws, Coinbase has for years made available for trading crypto assets that are investment contracts under the Howey test and well-established principles of the federal securities laws.”
