‘Really an outlier,’ Coinbase CEO hits back at US SEC chair over agency's lawsuit

livemint.com:

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong called out at US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler over the agency's lawsuit against the crypto exchange. Brian termed SEC Chair as an ‘outlier’ and assured that the funds are safe.

"The SEC chair is really an outlier," Armstrong said while talking about the ongoing lawsuit. He also mentioned that several other lawmakers he discussed the matter with were supportive of developing a clear regulatory framework for the technology.

The SEC has accused Coinbase of trading unregistered crypto assets and functioning as an unregistered exchange, broker, and clearinghouse. On Tuesday, Coinbase traded at least 13 crypto assets, alleged the SEC.

Notably, Brian Armstrong has been a vocal critic of the SEC and a major force advocating clearer crypto rules in the US. During a Bloomberg conference, he said that the company had approached the regulator about becoming registered, but received an "icy reception" from Gensler at their first meeting.

Regarding the nature of the cryptocurrency in the market, there has been a lot of confusion about whether the crytpocurrency should be delt as commodity, security, or currency

SEC Gensler opines that most tokens constitute securities and has steadily asserted the SEC's authority over the crypto market. U.S. President's Working Group on Financial Markets has also said some coins linked to fiat currencies may be securities.

Several crypto companies, including Coinbase, differ from SEC's opinion of crypto as security. They have repeatedly called for the SEC to create clear rules. On Wednesday, Coinbase shares rebounded to rise nearly 3.1% to $53.2. A spokesman for the SEC declined to comment.

The SEC on Monday took legal action against Binance,