Coinbase CEO’s $1.8 million stock sale raises eyebrows amid SEC lawsuit

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong sold $1.8 cardinal worthy of institution shares connected June 5, according to data from Dataroma, earlier quality of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) suit against the institution tanked its shares by much than 15% connected June 6.

The SEC alleges Coinbase operated arsenic an unregistered broker, exchange, and clearing agency. The regulator further alleged that its staking programme qualifies arsenic an unregistered securities offering. The level has stated it would defend itself in court.

Roughly 30k shares sold

Armstrong sold 29,730 Coinbase shares successful 8 transactions connected June 5, with the selling prices ranging betwixt $56.70 and $63.79, according to the Dataroma data.

COIN shares dropped by implicit 15% to little than $50 connected June 6. As of property time, it had somewhat recovered to $54.90 — down 3.22% from Armstong’s slightest selling price.

Brian Armstrong Coinbase Share Sales (Source: Dataroma)

Sales were pre-planned

The timing of these income starring up to the SEC suit raised concerns among the crypto assemblage that helium had anterior cognition of the lawsuit.

Fox Business writer Eleanor Terrett dismissed these speculations, saying the banal income were pre-planned since August 2022 successful compliance with the SEC’s Rule 10b5-1.

According to Investopedia, institution insiders tin usage Rule 10b5-1 to found predetermined plans for selling stock, including details similar price, quantity, and date. However, the insiders indispensable certify that they are unaware of nonpublic information.

Terrett added:

“Setting a merchantability to hap connected the 1st Monday of the month/start of the 3rd fiscal quarter, I’m told, isn’t excessively unusual.”

Armstrong’s erstwhile sales

Meanwhile, this caller merchantability is akin to Armstrong’s erstwhile selloffs. CryptoSlate reported that Armstrong sold 89,196 Coinbase shares for $5.8 cardinal successful March. At the time, astir fractional of these income were made  24 hours earlier the U.S. SEC issued a informing to the exchange.

The Coinbase CEO besides sold $1.8 cardinal worthy of the company’s stocks successful April.

However, this income inclination began successful November 2022 erstwhile Armstrong pledged to merchantability 2% of his involvement astatine the crypto steadfast to money technological probe and improvement done 2 startups — NewLimit and Research Hub.

The station Coinbase CEO’s $1.8 cardinal banal merchantability raises eyebrows amid SEC lawsuit appeared archetypal connected CryptoSlate.