There is a rising battle between the SEC and the Cryptocurrency market. Their latest action was against the Coinbase exchange.
What is the SEC?
The Security Exchange Commission, a.k.a SEC, is a United States government-run oversight agency responsible for;
- Markets’ security regulation
- Security Laws enforcement
- Ensuring fair treatment of investors
The Federal agency keeps tabs with game-changers in the investment world and is keen on projects related to investment fraud.
The Security Exchange Commission comprises five commissioners and has worked on investigating scandals such as the Eron Scandal and the Bernie Madoff Pyramid Scheme.
SEC vs. Coinbase
“After months of trying to engage with the
@SECGov on our planned Coinbase Lend product, we recently received notice that it intends to pursue legal action against us. We believe dialogue is at the heart of good regulation, even if the SEC may not,” Coinbase penned on Twitter.
The team added that SEC threatened with legal action without giving actual guidance to the industry.
Coinbase CEO Brian Amstrong says SEC is threatening to sue the exchange platforms over their crypto lending programs.
The act by the SEC angered many Crypto enthusiasts, investors, and the Coinbase community.
These enthusiasts firmly believe that the SEC is strongly connected to the traditional banking methods and sees the Crypto market as a financial threat. As a result, the enthusiasts hold that the SEC wants to get settlement fees from as many Crypto projects as possible.
Gary Gensler, the SEC Chairman, recently said that the federal agency has its eyes on DeFi as some have features that fall under the agency’s purview.
Coinbase CEO’s Thoughts
Brian Amstrong, on Twitter, said that Coinbase is committed to following the law adding that the SEC refused to tell his company why they were suing. He also noted that the agency took many records from them.
The SEC’s goal is to protect investors and promote fairness. Still, according to Armstrong, the oversight agency seems to get jealous over who is in financial control- resulting in weird behavior.
Final thoughts
Coinbase is not the only platform the SEC is fighting. Uniswap Labs is also under investigation for its marketing. Just like Coinbase, Uniswap Labs is willing to comply.
Crypto enthusiasts feel that now is the time for Crypto investors to join forces and fight the SEC. This is because they think that the SEC wants to take control of the Crypto market.
The SEC, however, claims that the Crypto market needs power because of the large investment volumes carried out in the digital market.