Coinbase argues in a new filing that the Securities and Exchange Commission is attempting to control all investment activity and define its own regulatory ambit.
Coinbase, Bitcoin Miners Extend Gains as BTC Surges on BlackRock ETF Hopes
Shares of Coinbase (COIN), MicroStrategy (MSTR) and Marathon Digital (MARA) surged more than 13% as Bitcoin (BTC) tops $34,000.
Bitcoin price surge drives BTC-related stocks to new multiweek highs
MicroStrategy — the public company holding the most Bitcoin — saw unrealized gains on its BTC investment reach near the $1 billion mark as its stocks gained nearly 9% on Oct. 24.
Cathie Wood’s ARK sells Grayscale Bitcoin Trust shares as BTC hits $34K
The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust is the largest asset held by the ARK Next Generation Internet ETF, accounting for more than 10% of its portfolio.
Coinbase Poised to Make Final Pitch in Bid to Kill SEC Accusations Quickly
Coinbase Global Inc. (COIN) is set to make its final case on Tuesday that a judge should spring it from the clutches of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in its unregistered-securities dispute.
Coinbase Bullish: Bitcoin ETF Approval Expected After SEC’s Defeat
In a recent CNBC report, Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States, expressed confidence in the approval of a US-based Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Paul Grewal, Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer, highlighted that the SEC’s recent court setback in the case of Grayscale’s proposed Bitcoin ETF has paved the way for a potential approval in the coming months.
Coinbase Eyes Bitcoin ETF Approval
Grewal emphasized that Coinbase is hopeful about the approval of ETF applications due to their compliance with existing laws governing financial services. Grewal noted that prominent financial institutions have submitted robust proposals, indicating progress in the regulatory landscape.
The recent court ruling against the SEC stated that the regulator lacked a valid basis to deny Grayscale’s request to convert its GBTC Bitcoin fund into an ETF.
The SEC chose not to appeal the ruling within the specified deadline, further increasing the likelihood of a BTC-related ETF gaining approval shortly.
However, Grewal acknowledged that the ultimate decision rests with the SEC, and he refrained from providing a specific timeline for the approval process.
Nevertheless, Grewal expressed confidence in the SEC’s obligation to fulfill its responsibilities, particularly in light of the court’s decision and the requirement to apply the law impartially.
The introduction of a Bitcoin ETF would offer investors an alternative means to gain exposure to BTC without directly purchasing the cryptocurrency from an exchange.
This could be particularly attractive to retail investors seeking Bitcoin exposure without the complexities of owning the underlying asset.
Per the report, Coinbase, being the largest crypto exchange in the United States, stands to benefit from the potential approval of a BTC ETF. The company’s common stock is held in portfolios designed to provide investors with crypto exposure.
Legal Troubles Mount For Grayscale’s Parent Company
While the recent court ruling has bolstered prospects for a BTC ETF, it is important to note that Grayscale’s bid to convert GBTC into an ETF is not without its challenges.
Digital Currency Group (DCG), Grayscale’s parent company, along with crypto exchange Gemini and DCG subsidiary Genesis, face a lawsuit from the New York Attorney General, accusing them of defrauding investors of over $1 billion.
Despite the ongoing legal issues, Grewal remained positive about the approval of additional Bitcoin ETFs in the future as the SEC adheres to the law and evaluates pending applications neutrally.
The report also touched upon the recent performance of BTC, which has experienced a resurgence in 2023. With a 72% year-to-date increase, Bitcoin has rebounded from significant declines in 2022.
Factors such as anticipation surrounding the upcoming BTC halving event and investor reactions to the Federal Reserve’s potential interest rate policy changes have contributed to increased demand for the digital currency.
Ultimately while trading volumes have declined recently, attributed partly to retail investors’ reduced engagement in response to low volatility and industry players’ challenges, Grewal expressed optimism that various developments, including criminal trials and rigorous regulatory actions, will restore investor and consumer interest in the crypto market.
As the landscape for Bitcoin ETFs evolves, market participants will closely monitor the SEC’s stance and any potential regulatory developments that shape the future of cryptocurrency investment products.
Featured image from Shutterstock, chart from TradingView.com
Base network launches 8-week training course for blockchain developers
Base Bootcamp will offer students weekly meetings with a mentor, a dedicated Discord server, and access to Coinbase and Base engineers, the team stated.
Coinbase’s Grewal Is ‘Quite Hopeful’ That Bitcoin Spot ETFs Will be Approved
Grewal said in a CNBC interview that he is “confident” that after SEC will fulfill its responsibilities in making a decision about the approval of the ETF applications.
Coinbase Picks Ireland as EU Hub
Forthcoming European laws known as MiCA will allow the exchange to serve the entire EU bloc with a single license.
Coinbase Trading Volume Slows Further as Crypto Winter Continues: Berenberg
“We continue to view COIN’s consumer take rate as being at risk of compression due to competition for market share within a lower volume crypto space,” the bank said.
Why Binance, Coinbase, Ripple and Other Crypto Firms Cite the ‘Major Questions’ Doctrine During Legal Imbroglios
Binance, Coinbase and Ripple are just some of the firms that have tried to apply an ill-defined legal doctrine meant to curb overzealous regulators.
Coinbase suspends 80 non-USD trading pairs to improve liquidity
Coinbase crypto exchange has been removing dozens of trading pairs in an effort to improve liquidity on its platforms.
Coinbase continues push to compel SEC to act on crypto rulemaking petition
Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal has once again called for a mandamus to compel the SEC to respond to the firm’s crypto rulemaking petition.
Coinbase Sounds Alarm on IRS Crypto Tax Proposal
As the U.S. crypto exchange called the recent IRS proposal for taxing crypto “incomprehensible,” the tax agency flagged that the industry isn’t paying its fair share.
Coinbase spot trading volume falls by 52% compared to 2022: Report
Coinbase recorded around $76 billion in spot trading volume, showing a sharp decline compared to the same quarter in 2022.
U.S. State Regulators Intervene in Coinbase’s Unregistered Securities Case
Amicus briefs filed to support the SEC argue crypto is insignificant, only used for speculation, and captured by existing investor-protection rules
Securities regulators oppose special treatment of crypto in Coinbase case
A body representing North America’s state securities regulators took aim at arguments made by crypto exchange Coinbase in its defense against the SEC.
Coinbase Ranks As Second Largest ETH Staking Entity As Lido’s Dominance Raises Concerns
Prominent crypto exchange Coinbase has emerged as the second largest ETH staking entity based on a recent scoop by Chinese reporter Colin Wu. This development comes amidst growing concerns about network centralization in regard to Lido’s dominance in the ETH staking market.
Coinbase Accounts For 14.1% Of ETH Staking Activity – Report
According to Wu, a report from Dragonfly data scientist hildobby, using data from Dune analytics, reveals that Coinbase presently has 3.873 million staked ETH, representing 14.1% of all staked ETH.
Coinbase dominance in the ETH staking sphere is only superseded by that of the liquid staking platform, Lido DAO, which accounts for one-third of all staked ETH.
Other platforms with a significant staking percentage include the Binance and Kraken exchanges, with a 4.2% and 3.0% market share, respectively. Meanwhile, the Figment staking pool comes third with a 4.9% market dominance.
Notably, Coinbase experienced a 44% increase in ETH staking activity over the last six months. Coincidentally, this development falls within the period during which the Ethereum Shanghai upgrade has been active.
Contrary to fears that the last Ethereum network update may induce a decline in staked ETH due to the ability to finally withdraw staked assets, the Shanghai upgrade has so far boosted stakers confidence, resulting in a net positive flow of 7.84 million ETH since its implementation in April.
At the time of writing, the total amount of staked ETH stands at 27.42 million ETH, representing 22.81 of ETH’s circulating supply.
Lido’s Growing Dominance Sparks Centralization Concerns
In other news, Wu stated there are community concerns about centralization in regard to Lido’s ETH staking dominance. Due to the Proof-of-Stake Consensus model, a higher amount of staked ETH translates to a higher voting power during governance processes.
Data from Dune Analytics shows that Lido accounts for 8.80 million staked ETH, representing 32.11% of the ETH staking market. Notably, the liquid staking platform experienced a 55% rise in staking activity over the last six months.
According to information from Ethereum’s official blog, concerns about centralization are quite valid, as any validator controlling a minimum of 33% of staked ETH can prevent the network from finalizing any block, even in the presence of a 66% majority.
Moreover, if a validator acquires 55% of the staked ETH, they could theoretically split the Ethereum chain into two forks. All these are speculations, as there is no evidence indicating that Lido DAO has any malicious intentions toward the Ethereum network.
At press time, ETH trades at $1,620.18, with a 1.36% decline in the last day, based on data from CoinMarketCap. In tandem, the token’s daily trading volume is down by 36.41% and valued at $2.86 billion.
Tokenized U.S. Treasuries Arrive on Coinbase’s Base with Backed’s RWA Token Issuance
The market for tokenized U.S. Treasuries has grown sixfold this year to $666 million, according to a real-world asset data provider.
Blackbird, Crypto Restaurant App, Raises $24M in Funding Led by A16z
The target audience is restaurant users, but the blockchain-based project comes with its own “Flypaper” and fungible FLY tokens.