The SEC has agreed to drop the complaint against Coinbase with prejudice, which means it cannot be filed again, the firm announced on Friday.
The action, which is still pending the Commissioners’ approval, is another indication that the Trump administration intends to be more pro-crypto than the SEC was under former head Gary Gensler.
The SEC’s lawsuit, filed in 2023, alleged that crypto assets were securities and that Coinbase was operating as “an unregistered national securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency.”
Coinbase retaliated, claiming, among other things, that the SEC had not set up sufficiently explicit regulations pertaining to cryptocurrency to bring a lawsuit for violations.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong stated in a video where he posted on X on Friday.
“I remember in 2023, a lot of people were advising on this and they were saying, ‘Do not engage in litigation with the SEC; it’s going to cost you tens of millions of dollars,’”
In the video, Armstrong also made allegations about the SEC’s motivations and tactics.
Armstrong claimed that he fought because he thought he was rescuing the American cryptocurrency market.
He also said
“Not as many other companies had deep pockets as we did,”. “And ultimately we had to spend $50 million defending this case”. They proving the naysayers right on how expensive the fight would be.
A Coinbase representative explained that staff time was not included in this sum; only external legal fees were.
Despite Coinbase’s apparent legal win, Armstrong stated that he still thinks the United States must “get legislation for crypto passed” in order to codify beneficial policies, failing which it runs the risk of lagging behind other countries.
