- The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled
- The exchange had previously asked the agency about the legality of the regulator’s rulemaking on the crypto-asset market
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit heard Coinbase’s suit to compel the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to respond to the company’s petition.
The agency has 10 days to formulate an official position on the regulation of the cryptocurrency sector.
Recall, Coinbase filed a petition last summer.. The exchange demanded that the regulator clarify the Commission’s authority to oversee the digital asset market.
The main question in the petition is whether the existing securities regulatory framework applies to cryptocurrencies. The SEC ignored the request and the exchange went to court.
Today, May 4, Coinbase General Counsel Paul Grewal said the company has received a formal response:
“The Third Circuit Court of Appeals has just provided a text ruling ordering the SEC to respond to our petition within 10 days.. We have one week to comment on the decision.”
This means that the Commission is obligated to at least consider and respond to the petition within the allotted time.
Of course, we should not count on the regulator to clearly and understandably explain its course. The SEC does not want to advertise its refusal to develop a new regulatory framework.
The agency has not commented on the situation so far.. In response, members of the community “flooded” Grevala with memes about Gensler’s position, such as:
Some were genuinely surprised that a major company needed a court order to get a response from the industry regulator. Others have noted that the SEC will likely just publish another “rebuff.”