Coinbase Confident in SEC Lawsuit Dismissal

On August 4, Coinbase intends to file an order seeking the dismissal of the Securities and Exchange Commission‘s litigation, with the exchange’s legal chief stating that Coinbase expects to win the case.

On August 3 during Coinbase’s earnings call for the second quarter of 2023, Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal expressed confidence that the exchange would win the court case that the regulator had filed.

“With respect to the litigation with the SEC, I want to be very clear. We do think we can win. We expect to win.”

On June 6, the SEC filed a lawsuit against the exchange, alleging that it sold unregistered securities and operated as an unregistered securities exchange.

“Tomorrow […] We will be moving the court for an order dismissing the case in its entirety.”

Grewal stated that Coinbase will submit a motion to dismiss the lawsuit on August 4.

Grewal stated that it will contend that Coinbase did not list securities on its platform, that the SEC has no regulatory authority over cryptocurrency exchanges, and that it never advised Coinbase of the need to register when it declared Coinbase’s registration statement effective in April 2021.

He anticipates that by the end of October, the court will receive and review the brief outlining its arguments.

Grewal stated that achieving regulatory clarity was the objective of not only the litigation but also all of the company’s interactions with the SEC and the federal government.

Grewal stated, “The reason we are so focused on pushing for regulatory clarity in the United States is because, under the current status quo, we have very conflicting messages about what the law provides.”

On the legal status of Ether, he cited the contradictory statements made by SEC Chairman Gary Gensler and Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Rostin Behnam.

In a March Senate hearing, Behnam stated that ETH was a commodity, whereas Gensler has previously stated that all cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin are securities.

“Regardless of any particular outcome on any motion or any court case, clarity itself is the goal. That’s how we define winning.”