The SEC strikes again: First Binance, now Coinbase

Key takeaways

SEC sues Coinbase for acting as an unregistered broker

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a lawsuit against Coinbase, one of the leading crypto exchanges in the world.

This latest cryptocurrency news comes barely 24 hours after the SEC slapped a lawsuit against rival exchange Binance. 

SEC filed the lawsuit a few minutes ago, alleging that Coinbase has never registered as a broker, national securities exchange or clearing agency. Thus, the SEC claims that Coinbase has been evading the disclosure scheme for securities markets. 

The regulatory agency alleged that several tokens offered by the crypto exchange are securities. SEC filed the lawsuit in a New York Federal court.

Coinbase is yet to respond to the lawsuit. This latest development comes as the SEC and Coinbase have been battling a legal case over the past few months.

Earlier this year, the SEC issued Coinbase a Wells Notice, indicating that it is looking into the affairs of the cryptocurrency exchange. 

The crypto exchange now filed a lawsuit against the SEC in April, asking the securities regulator to provide a yes or no to its request for the commission to draft and approve a digital asset-specific rule.

US SEC is coming after exchanges

The lawsuit against Coinbase comes barely 24 hours after the SEC went after Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by daily trading volume. 

The SEC alleged that Binance was offering services to high-valued US customers on its platform, which is in violation of U.S. securities laws.

The regulatory agency also claimed that Binance CEO exercised control over customer assets, adding that he combined them with personal and company holdings.

The SEC has been coming after crypto exchanges in recent months, including Kraken. 

Coinbase’s stock price has dipped by more than 15% during Tuesday’s pre-market trading session following this latest development. COIN is now trading at $49.44 per share.