Coinbase, the leading cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume in the United States, is once again under the legal spotlight. A new class-action lawsuit has been filed against the company, claiming that its entire business model has been unlawful from its inception. This case mirrors a similar lawsuit the company is currently facing.
Plaintiffs in the new lawsuit claim that the ALGO, XLM, SOL, MANA, MATIC, NEAR, UNI and XTZ tokens traded on Coinbase are, in fact, securities. The lawsuit was filed in the Northern District of California by west coast law firm Scott+Scott, which represents plaintiffs from California and Florida.
The lawsuit alleges that Coinbase has “knowingly, willfully, and repeatedly violated state securities laws since it began doing business.” In response to these allegations, Coinbase issued a statement denying the allegations as “legally unfounded,” expressing full faith in due process, and stating their intent to fully address the allegations at the appropriate time.
Interestingly, this case bears a striking resemblance to another case currently pending in the courts. This other lawsuit also alleges consumer damages resulting from the sale of securities on Coinbase's platform. The case, which was initially dismissed in February 2023, was partially revived following a recent decision by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
This latest case differs from Coinbase's highly publicized legal battle with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on a similar issue, namely whether tokens sold on Coinbase are securities. In this ongoing case, Coinbase recently filed a temporary appeal challenging a judge's decision to allow the case to proceed.
*This is not investment advice.