By
Steve Muchoki
April 16th, 2024
Coinbase shares edged 7.56 per cent higher on Monday to close the day trading at $61.07.
The leading publicly traded crypto exchange by daily traded volume in the United States, Coinbase Global Inc (NASDAQ: COIN), has experienced astronomical growth in the past few years compared to the traditional banking sector. Moreover, four regional banks in the United States have collapsed this year, with most already absorbed by large banks. However, the United States government led by the Biden administration has pushed to regulate the cryptocurrency industry in a manner that they all pay high taxes. For instance, the United States SEC has argued that all crypto assets apart from Bitcoin are unregistered securities.
This week, DC will see a new TV campaign that explains how crypto moves America forward and why it’s the most important technology we have to create more economic freedom.
It’s time to update the system.
Crypto can help.Learn more at https://t.co/6Hf1DAqeIV pic.twitter.com/hmAQuNiA34
— Coinbase 🛡️ (@coinbase) May 22, 2023
Additionally, the SEC has argued that crypto-staking products are also unregulated products. Recently, the Biden administration through the 2024 federal budget, the proposal for Digital Asset Mining Energy (DAME) suggested a 30 percent tax on crypto miners, in a bid to control the impact on the environment. However, crypto proponents have argued the Biden administration is chasing investors in the nascent technology to other global-friendly markets like Europe, UAE, and Asia.
Coinbase Fights for Crypto in America
Coinbase has undertaken several legal measures to ensure the United States regulators are well informed on the role of crypto in the future of the country’s financial system before formulating and implementing any policy changes. In recent developments, Coinbase has launched a televised campaign advertisement in the country’s capital Washington DC to explain to the regulators the importance of crypto in the country’s economic reforms.
“We’re running a TV campaign in DC this week to explain why crypto is the most important technology America has to update the financial system. Lots of policy work to do to ensure America isn’t left behind,” Brian Armstrong, Coinbase’s Chief Executive Officer noted.
Notably, Armstrong described crypto as a technology that has the potential to update the country’s financial markets in a similar way the 5G network did to internet connectivity. As a result, the crypto billionaire urged American regulators to act fast to avoid being left behind as other countries adopt the industry for good.
“Fundamentally, crypto is not a financial product. It’s a technology that can update all kinds of financial products. It can improve settlement times. It can make it cheaper to send money to your family overseas in another country. Regardless of what you think about it, it’s not going anywhere. It can’t be uninvented,” Armstrong stated.
Bigger Picture
Coinbase and the rest of the crypto community in the United States have been pushing for the SEC to avoid regulating the industry through enforcement. Furthermore, the American crypto community has argued that new laws are needed to regulate the nascent industry to avoid chasing investors overseas. The SEC, on the other hand, through Chair Gary Gensler has argued that the existing securities laws will be applied to the crypto market regardless of the technology underpinned.