Shares of crypto-exchange Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) are down a massive 16% at the time of writing today after the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged that the company is operating its crypto trading platform as an unregistered national securities exchange, broker as well as a clearing agency.
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Further, the SEC is also charging Coinbase for failing to register the offering as well as the sale of its staking-as-a-service program. The regulator is seeking injunctive relief, disgorgement of wrongful gains as well as penalties in its complaint at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
The action against Coinbase comes fresh on the heels of the SEC filing a lawsuit against another crypto exchange, Binance. The SEC has accused Binance and its CEO Changpeng Zhao of operating an illegal trading platform in the U.S. and misusing customers’ funds.
Not surprisingly, multiple cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin (BTC-USD) and Ethereum (ETH-USD) are down nearly 4.5% and 3.2% respectively at the time of writing today.
While this year’s rally in crypto prices had managed to stave off recent selling pressure, the SEC’s latest mega moves are having an impact on trader sentiment already.
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