Monat: Januar 2025

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CFTC Chair Rostin Behnam to leave agency, calls for need to fill crypto regulatory gap

  • Behnam’s last day at the Commission will be February 7
  • The CFTC obtained a $12.7 billion judgment against the now-defunct FTX exchange and Alameda Research in 2024

Rostin Behnam, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chair, will step down on January 20 as President-elect Donald Trump enters the White House.

In a statement released by the agency, Behnam added that his last day at the Commission will be February 7. Behnam, who has been a Democratic commissioner at the CFTC since 2017 and as Chair since 2021, said:

“Over the past several years, a multitude of domestic and global events tested the resilience of all financial markets. I am proud that the Commission consistently made deliberate and intentional decisions to ensure continued strength. We worked to address regulatory gaps and uncertainty. We also responsibly engaged new entrants to support innovation.”

Unlike the tougher stance taken by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against the crypto market, the CFTC has taken a lighter approach. This despite the fact that it obtained a $12.7 billion judgment against the now-defunct FTX exchange and Alameda Research last year.

Behnam, who has advocated for crypto regulation, said that regulation in the crypto market is lacking, calling for a need to “fill this gap,” given the increasing adoption seen by traditional financial institutions and retail and institutional investors.

No successor named yet

Trump has yet to name Behnam’s successor; however, a December report from Bloomberg indicated that Brian Quintenz, a former CFTC Commissioner, is in the running to lead the agency.

Quintenz currently leads policy at a16z Crypto, the digital asset arm of venture capital Andreessen Horowitz.

Behnam’s resignation comes amid a number of other agency officials resigning ahead of Trump’s reappointment to the White House. Yesterday, it was reported that the US Federal Reserve’s vice chair for supervision Michael Barr is stepping down on February 28.

Gary Gensler, Chair of the SEC, is preparing to leave the agency on January 20.  Commissioner Jaime Lizárraga will also be stepping down later this month.

The post CFTC Chair Rostin Behnam to leave agency, calls for need to fill crypto regulatory gap appeared first on CoinJournal.

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US court grants Coinbase interlocutory appeal in case against the SEC

  • Coinbase can now seek guidance from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals to determine if the SEC’s complaints against it are valid
  • The SEC first filed a complaint against Coinbase in 2023, arguing that it operated as an unregistered brokerage in violation of federal securities laws

Coinbase has been granted an interlocutory appeal, temporarily pausing its ongoing court case against the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

According to a filing, Judge Katherine Polk Failla of the Southern District of New York granted the crypto exchange’s motion.

Filing a complaint on June 6, 2023, the SEC argued that Coinbase amounted “to the operation of an unregistered brokerage, exchange, and clearing agency in violation of federal securities laws.”

This latest filing means Coinbase can now proceed to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals to receive guidance and to determine if the SEC’s complaints against it are valid.

Taking to X, Paul Grewal, Coinbase’s chief legal officer, wrote: “Over the strenuous objection of @SECGov, Judge Failla has GRANTED our motion for leave to pursue an interlocutory appeal and STAYED the district court litigation. We appreciate the Court’s careful consideration. On to the Second Circuit we go.”

The SEC vs. Coinbase

With this latest motion, it seems the back and forth between the two may finally be coming to an end.

Following the 2023 SEC complaint, Coinbase filed its answer in late June seeking to dismiss the lawsuit for lack of merit.

In a 177-page report, Coinbase argued that the SEC’s accusations were based on claims that 12 of the listed crypto tokens trading on the exchange were securities. However, when the SEC authorized Coinbase to go public, six of the 12 crypto assets were already trading.

As a result, Coinbase claimed that the lawsuit should be dismissed because the agency didn’t classify any of the crypto assets as securities.

In December 2023, the SEC denied a rulemaking petition by Coinbase. According to SEC Chair Gary Gensler, “existing laws and regulations apply to the crypto securities markets.” However, SEC Commissioners Hester Peirce and Mark Uyeda said they “disagree with the Commission’s decision.”

This was followed by a March report that Judge Failla ruled that the SEC’s case against Coinbase would move forward on most of the claims against it, denying the exchange’s motion to dismiss the case.

In September, the SEC then filed a motion for an extension from the court giving it more time to provide Coinbase with key documents. More recently, Coinbase pushed for court intervention to obtain SEC documents on how securities laws apply to cryptocurrencies.

Now, with the latest judge ruling, this is a “big legal win” for Coinbase, according to Fox Business News reporter Eleanor Terrett.

The post US court grants Coinbase interlocutory appeal in case against the SEC appeared first on CoinJournal.