Brian Armstrong, the co-founder & CEO of U.S. crypto exchange Coinbase, took to Twitter to express his opposition to crypto regulations. Armstrong tweeted: “Regulation by enforcement has a terrible chilling effect, and rhetoric matters – we’ve already seen a huge amount of crypto talent, asset issuers, and startups go offshore.”
One of the strongest policy arguments for cryptocurrency is that it's a national security issue. The US missed on semiconductors and 5g which is now largely manufactured offshore. It can't afford to have cryptocurrency go offshore as well. (same for every country btw)
— Brian Armstrong (@brian_armstrong) September 20, 2022
“One of the strongest policy arguments for cryptocurrency is that it’s a national security issue,” Armstrong stated.
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Speaking about crypto going offshore, Armstrong said: “the US missed on semiconductors and 5g, which is now largely manufactured offshore. It can’t afford to have cryptocurrency go offshore as well. (same for every country, by the way)”
The increasing regulatory scrutiny around Coinbase, America’s largest crypto exchange, has seen the SEC open another probe into the exchange’s crypto yield and staking products. According to the investigation records, the SEC has been probing the company’s “processes for listing assets, the classification of certain listed assets, its staking programs, and its stablecoin and yield-generating products.”
Armstrong Vows to Ensure Crypto Succeeds for Everyone
Recently, in a move to tackle censorship by the U.S. Treasury Department, Armstrong made the bold decision to finance Tornado Cash’s lawsuit, which has now been filed by 6 people, with each of the claimants alleging to have used Tornado Cash for legitimate purposes. The sanctions placed on the embattled platform affected each of them in the most brutal way, as their Ethereum (ETH) addresses were banned outright, regardless of intent.
Speaking on his decision, Armstrong emphasized that Coinbase takes “a hard stance against unlawful behavior”.
“Coinbase is a global company, but we're based right here in the USA and will fight to make sure crypto succeeds here for everyone. It's too important to America and the free world,” asserted Armstrong, according to whom, within a decade, the number of cryptocurrency users worldwide will reach one billion.
On the Flipside
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The SEC has been accused of going after crypto companies with frivolous lawsuits. The SEC recently started litigation against crypto researcher and YouTuber Ian Balina, alleging that Balina conducted unlawful activity through the unregistered offering of Sparkster (SPRK) tokens, for which he had formed an investing pool on Telegram in 2018.
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Ripple’s Counsel recently accused the SEC of acting not to enforce the law, but rather to remake it in the hopes that it can impermissibly expand the agency’s jurisdiction.
Why You Should Care
Brian Armstrong has been one of the most notable crypto leaders to insist on the need for regulatory clarity for crypto.
Find out more about the SEC’s probe into Coinbase:
The SEC Opens Probe into Coinbase’s Crypto Yield and Staking Products
Read about the steps being taken by Coinbase’s CEO in his stand against unlawful behaviour:
Coinbase To Fund Lawsuit Against U.S. Treasury Over Tornado Cash Sanctions
