Finst

SEC opens investigation into Coinbase

The SEC has opened an investigation into Coinbase.

By Mike Hesp
• 2 min read
SEC opens investigation into Coinbase

The SEC has opened an investigation into Coinbase. The accusation: selling unregistered securities. Is a lawsuit on the horizon?

Coinbase continues to navigate murky waters. Alongside the recently announced mass layoffs and a case of insider trading by a former employee, there are now regulatory headaches. As Bloomberg reports, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has launched an investigation into the U.S. crypto exchange. The accusation: selling unregistered securities to American customers.

The head of the legal department, Paul Grewal, denied the allegations on Twitter. "We are confident that our stringent due diligence (a process the SEC has already reviewed) keeps securities off our platform."

Overall, Coinbase offers more than 150 tokens for trading. If these were classified as securities, the exchange would need to register with the SEC.

Meanwhile, accusations against crypto companies by the SEC aren’t new. For instance, the ongoing legal dispute between Ripple and the SEC centers on the claim that unregistered securities were sold. Whether the Coinbase case will take on similar proportions remains to be seen.

Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. The information provided may be incomplete, inaccurate, or outdated and should not be relied upon as such. Nothing on this website should be considered a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any cryptocurrency. Investing in crypto-assets involves risk of loss.