The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on February 27, 2025, its decision to dismiss the case of civil enforcement action against Coinbase.
Last week, the regulatory agency made its intention to shut down the legal dispute against Coinbase publicly. The agency initiated the lawsuit in 2023. It accused Coinbase of operating as an unregistered securities exchange and facilitating trading of at least 13 crypto tokens. The authority then said that Coinbase should have registered these tokens as securities.
SEC Acting Chair Mark Uyeda said, “It’s time for the commission to rectify its approach and develop crypto policy more transparently.” Uyeda’s remarks came in as lawyers representing the SEC filed a motion to dismiss the Coinbase case.
It’s official: case dismissed.
Time for fair legislation for the entire industry. pic.twitter.com/fRsZVX4sBk
— Coinbase 🛡️ (@coinbase) February 27, 2025
The dismissal of this case, however, does not mean that the SEC is free of other legal matters considering Coinbase.
Some of their other legal entanglements with Coinbase include Coinbase’s petition to force the SEC to establish crypto rules and their intentions of getting hold of SEC’s internal documents from which it could glean the agency’s deliberations on their approach towards digital assets.
For Coinbase, the case regarding the establishment of crypto rules is of top priority. The company raised some pertinent legal questions, like what makes a crypto security and when and how a digital asset exchange could register with the SEC.
These fundamental questions haven’t been answered yet. It is hoped that the US Congress will be able to provide solutions going forward.
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Series Of Cases Rolled Back Since New SEC Leadership Took Charge
Since US President Donald Trump’s administration came in, the agency has dismissed several high-profile legal cases, signalling a shift in their enforcement strategy. In February alone, a total of eight companies, including Coinbase, have seen their cases being dropped by the regulatory agency.
On 28 February 2025, the SEC dismissed the case against Consensys’ MetaMask. The agency had earlier accused the company of securities violation related to its staking services and crypto swapping features.
The lawsuit filed in 2023 against Justin Sun’s TRON has also been paused this week. The regulatory body had accused Sun and his companies of securities violat ions. Although the details haven’t been made public, the motion to stay the proceedings suggests that a settlement is due.
Gemini’s earn lending program had caught the SEC’s attention, leading to a lawsuit in 2023. The agency claimed that the program enabled unregistered offers and sales of securities. Recently, the SEC announced that it had closed its investigation into the matter and would not be pursuing enforcement actions.
The agency also closed its investigation into OpenSea last week. The company was accused of violating securities laws through the sale of NFTs on their platform in 2024.
Robinhood announced that the SEC had formally dropped its probe into the alleged violations of security laws following the May 2024 Wells Notice.
The SEC also dismissed their case against Uniswap. The company had received a Wells notification in April 2024 regarding their crypto trading and swapping services.
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Leadership Shakeup Under the Trump Administration
The SEC under Trump has shifted from the hardline enforcement policies of the last administration to pro-crypto regulatory policies. The change in the agency’s demeaner was immediately noticeable after the departure of the previous leadership. Specifically, after the departure of crypto skeptic Gary Gensler, the previous chair of the SEC.
The temporary chair at the SEC, Mark Uyeda, promoted by Trump, immediately began rolling back the agency’s previous stance on crypto. Moreover, Uyeda also began to overhaul the SEC’s legal officials who did not believe in the agency’s pro-crypto stance.
Uyeda appointed Commissioner Hester Peirce, a fellow republican, to run the SEC’s crypto task force. Both Uyeda and Peirce have been critics of Gensler’s approach towards the crypto industry.
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Key Takeaways
SEC drops Coinbase lawsuit, signaling a pro-crypto regulatory shift.
8 high high-profile cases, including Coinbase, have been dismissed so far.
The dismissal of this case does not mean that the SEC is free of other legal matters, considering Coinbase.
