Coinbase Continues Push to Compel SEC to Act on Crypto Rulemaking Petition – Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer, Paul Grewal, has reiterated the request for a mandamus, seeking to compel the SEC to address the company’s cryptocurrency rulemaking petition. Coinbase remains steadfast in its efforts to obtain a court order that would require the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to take action on their cryptocurrency rulemaking petition.
Coinbase is seeking a mandamus to be issued within a 30-day timeframe, compelling the SEC to provide an official response regarding the acceptance or denial of their petition. On October 12, the SEC finally delivered a highly anticipated status update, offering a vague statement that commission staff provided a recommendation to the SEC concerning Coinbase’s petition but did not disclose additional details.
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On October 13, via a post on X (formerly Twitter), Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer, Paul Grewal, criticized the SEC for its delay and urged the use of a mandamus to pressure the SEC into clearly stating its intentions. Grewal also shared Coinbase’s response to the SEC update that it filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
“The SEC’s unilluminating report is mere bureaucratic pantomime and confirms that nothing short of mandamus will prompt the agency to take its obligations seriously. It took more than a year and an order from this Court to elicit even a staff-level recommendation,” the response reads, adding that: “The Commission has resolved not to conduct the rulemaking Coinbase requested, and it will exploit every bureaucratic artifice in its arsenal to forestall judicial review so long as the Court allows it.”
Coinbase initially filed the rulemaking petition in July 2022, requesting the SEC to “propose and adopt rules” to govern the crypto market, including potential rules to clearly outline which digital assets fall under the definition of securities. After the SEC failed to respond, Coinbase filed a petition for mandamus nine months later, seeking the court to compel the SEC to give a “yes or no” answer.
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Nevertheless, the SEC has responded on several occasions, rejecting the necessity to adhere to Coinbase’s demands and requesting the court to reject Coinbase’s mandamus petition. Back in mid-June, the SEC requested a 120-day extension to reply to the rulemaking petition. This timeline implies that the agency might provide a response by late October or early November.