- The decision was made by the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
- Earlier, the exchange applied to the department with a request about the legitimacy of the regulator’s rule-making in relation to the crypto-assets market
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit heard a lawsuit by Coinbase demanding that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) respond to the company’s petition. The department has 10 days to formulate an official position regarding the regulation of the cryptocurrency sector.
Recall that Coinbase sent a petition last summer. The exchange demanded that the regulator clarify the powers of the Commission in overseeing the digital asset market.
The main question in the petition is whether the existing regulatory framework for securities covers cryptocurrencies. The SEC ignored the request, and the exchange went to court.
Today, May 4, Coinbase General Counsel Paul Grewal declaredthat the company received an official response:
“The Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has just granted a text ruling ordering the SEC to respond to our petition within 10 days. We have a week to comment on the decision.”
This means that the Commission is obliged to at least consider and respond to the petition within the allotted time. Of course, you should not count on the fact that the regulator will clearly and understandably explain its course. The SEC does not want to advertise the refusal to develop a new regulatory framework.
So far, the department has not commented on the situation. In response, members of the community bombarded Grewal with memes about Gensler’s position, for example:

Some were genuinely surprised that a large company needed a court order to get a response from an industry regulator. Others noted that the SEC will most likely just publish another “reply”.