Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong says the next U.S. SEC chair should discard all ‘frivolous’ cases

Coinbase CEO and co-founder Brian Armstrong tweeted on October 29 that the next U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission chair should discard what he termed ‘frivolous lawsuits.’ Some of the lawsuits Armstrong demanded the commission to drop were those against Coinbase.

The U.S. SEC has filed lawsuits against multiple crypto companies, with the most notable being the recently appealed Ripple case. The commission has also charged several exchanges for discrepancies this year, including Kraken, Binance, and KuCoin.

Armstrong also pointed out the continued lack of clarity and conflicting statements the commission has been mentioning about digital assets. The Coinbase CEO highlighted the most recent issue of concerning digital assets being considered as securities. 

Over the years, the U.S. SEC’s statement on the topic has changed, with the commission releasing three different statements in 2024. The commission mentioned that digital assets were just computer code before saying that a digital asset itself represents an investment contract. The latest statement conflicts with the earlier two, saying that the digital asset itself is not a security.

Other statements highlighted in Armstrong’s post included whether Bitcoin is a security, whether the commission can regulate crypto exchanges, and whether the existing crypto laws are clear. Many industry experts, including the Coinbase CEO, agree that the commission has failed to offer regulatory clarity around crypto.

Coinbase’s Armstrong demands change from the commission

The next SEC chair should withdraw all frivolous cases, and issue an apology to the American people.

It would not undue the damage done to the country, but it would start the process of restoring trust in the SEC as an institution. pic.twitter.com/kWVx73vYMs

— Brian Armstrong (@brian_armstrong) October 29, 2024

In the post, the Coinbase co-founder demanded that the next U.S. SEC chair apologize to American crypto holders. According to Armstrong, the steps would not undo the damage done to the country but would trigger a platform for change in the coming years. The Coinbase CEO also mentioned that the steps would also help restore trust in the commission as a financial watchdog. 

Many crypto users agreed with Armstrong, with some saying that the first lawsuit that should have been dropped is the recently filed appeal by the commission against the Ripple case ruling. Another crypto user noted that the Coinbase CEO’s statement was an indirect way of Armstrong saying he did not respect the commission. 

Recently, several states in the country have been creating their crypto regulations to deal with the U.S. SEC’s lack of clarity around the crypto regulatory framework. The latest state to join the bandwagon was Pennsylvania, which introduced a crypto bipartisan bill called the Bitcoin Rights Bill. The bill received a staggering 176 votes in the House of Representatives, receiving only 26 ‘nos.’

Trump promises to fire the U.S. SEC chair if elected

Former President Donald Trump, who has been increasingly vocal about crypto in his presidential campaign, promised his crypto voters that he would fire the current U.S. SEC chair, Gary Gensler. The former president also said that he would appoint a Bitcoin and crypto advisor for his office. Trump revealed the plans during the Bitcoin Conference in Nashville in June this year. 

Trump described the commission’s current actions toward the crypto industry as persecution, promising that it would end on his first day in office. The former president also promised to create a comprehensive regulatory framework that would provide clarity for the crypto community. 

In a recent interview with Bloomberg, Gary Gensler said that he would not comment on the statements made by the former president. The U.S. SEC chair also reiterated the commission’s dedication to protecting investors from ‘conflict of interest.’