Trump Admin Drops Lawsuit Against Coinbase, a Cryptocurrency Exchange That Has Become a Political Force

In a post celebrating the decision, Coinbase cited the change in “political leadership at the SEC” for the 2023 lawsuit being dropped.

Coinbase, a cryptocurrency exchange, has received favorable treatment from the Trump administration after spending heavily on elections in 2024. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has withdrawn a lawsuit against Coinbase, which alleged that the company was operating an unregistered securities exchange.

Coinbase celebrated the decision in a post, highlighting the change in “political leadership at the SEC” that led to the 2023 lawsuit being dropped.

This announcement is a further indication from the Trump administration that it will be more lenient on the cryptocurrency industry, which has become a major source of political資金 in federal elections, primarily for Republicans.

Coinbase has made efforts to build a closer relationship with Trump since the election. In November, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong met privately with Trump at Mar-a-Lago, reportedly to discuss personnel appointments. On December 2, the company donated $1 million to President Trump's inauguration. In late January, Coinbase appointed Trump's campaign co-manager Chris LaCivita to its Global Advisory Council.

According to CNBC, the company's chief legal officer, Paul Grewal, attended multiple Trump fundraisers prior to the November elections. As the election results were being announced, Grewal posted on X, “I hope @SECGov understands what has happened tonight…Stop suing crypto.”