Judge Criticizes SEC Approval of Coinbase IPO in Pre-Motion Conference

Southern District of New York justice Katherine P. Failla called to attraction the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) support of Coinbase’s Initial Public Offering (IPO), hinting that the bureau could person been much thorough. Failla expressed skepticism astir the SEC’s posture that approving the Coinbase S-1 signifier to spell nationalist meant “nothing,” stating that the committee could person called retired Coinbase’s behavior.

SEC v. Coinbase: Judge Failla Was Skeptical Towards Regulator’s Posture connected Coinbase IPO Approval

Katherine P. Failla, justice for the Southern District of New York, has called attraction to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) behaviour erstwhile approving the Initial Public Offering (IPO) of Coinbase to spell done backmost successful 2021. Failla hinted that the committee mightiness person done much to awesome the problems successful the exchange’s concern exemplary earlier greenlighting its listing connected Nasdaq.

During the pre-motion league of the case, which took spot connected July 13, Failla was funny astir the SEC support of the S-1 signifier from Coinbase, which described its concern exemplary to the committee to beryllium listed successful nationalist markets.

Failla questioned SEC lawyer Peter Mancuso astir this, stating:

Is determination immoderate value that I should give, oregon possibly determination is none, to the information that the committee issued the S-1 and didn’t say, hey, ticker out, guys, you’re engaging successful securities laws violations?

Mancuso stated that determination was “no way” that support of an S-1 constituted a “blessing of a company’s full business.” However, Failla pressed the subject, expressing “skepticism” towards the SEC’s stance. She declared:

You ne'er could person said to them, hey, you guys request to registry arsenic a securities exchange. That was wrong the powerfulness of the SEC to do, was it not?

While Mancuso explained that helium could not “really talk to that,” Failla explained that thing stopped the committee from doing it.

Further Criticism

The support of Coinbase’s nationalist offering came up again further on successful the discussion, with Sullivan & Cromwell’s Steven Peikin blasting the commission’s stance, stating:

The information is, different judges person had the nonstop aforesaid instinct that you person had and person said, successful galore instances, the information that the committee reviews and authorizes a registration connection is of immoderate ineligible weight.

The support of Coinbase’s IPO was signaled successful 1 of the filings earlier this pre-motion league arsenic portion of the exchange’s defense, stating that the committee allowed Coinbase’s shares “to beryllium sold to millions of retail and organization investors” and implying that the caller suit contradicts this support action, fixed that six of the 12 assets deemed to represent securities by the committee were already listed connected Coinbase’s trading level astatine the time.

What bash you deliberation astir the presumption of Judge Failla connected the SEC’s support of Coinbase’s IPO? Tell america successful the comments conception below.