The controversy over the well-known exchange Coinbase delisting encapsulated Bitcoin WBTC has been aroused recently, and now there is new progress in the case. The U.S. Federal Court ruled at a hearing on December 18 to reject the temporary injunction filed by WBTC custodian BiT Global against Coinbase and allow Coinbase to fully suspend WBTC trading on December 19 as originally planned. The court stated that it rejected the injunction because BiT Global failed to provide sufficient evidence to prove that the removal action would cause "immediate and irreparable harm."
The origin of the delisting controversy, Sun Yuchen participated in WBTC management
According to reports, Coinbase previously announced on 11/19 that it would completely stop WBTC trading on 12/19, causing dissatisfaction with the custodian BiT Global. BiT Global gradually escalated from warm words to taking legal action, and filed a lawsuit against Coinbase on December 13, claiming that Coinbase's decision would cause "immediate and irreparable damage" to WBTC holders.
However, Coinbase responded in its reply letter on December 17 that the reason for the delisting was that BitGo, WBTC’s main reserve custodian, announced in August this year that it would cooperate with BiT Global to share the management rights of WBTC. Justin Sun, the founder of Tron, also participated in its management and pointed out that Justin Sun committed fraud and manipulated the market in the United States, making WBTC uncontrollable and risky. Justin Sun was once sued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for alleged fraud and market manipulation, which caused the industry to have many doubts about Sun's trust.
The court rejected the application because BiT Global had insufficient reasons.
The Federal Court pointed out that BiT Global only took legal action a few weeks after Coinbase announced the delisting, and it was not clear how "urgent and important" the "delisting" was to BiT Global.
In addition, the court added that BiT Global’s arguments lacked substantial evidence and were mostly speculative and hypothetical issues. Sonal Mehta, a lawyer for Coinbase, emphasized during the hearing that the decline in WBTC’s circulation actually started after BiT Global announced Sun Yuchen’s participation in management, and was not Coinbase’s main delisting focus.
Coinbase Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal also posted on X that he was very grateful for the verdict. Many netizens also left messages to support Coinbase.
Whether Coinbase takes advantage of the opportunity to operate, both parties have their own opinions
However, during the hearing, BiT Global’s lawyer Cyclone Covey believed that Coinbase used Justin Sun as an excuse to delist WBTC. He also accused Coinbase of not raising concerns in August, but delaying until November to announce the decision to delist. Criticism Coinbase is skeptical of the SEC and the FBI on the one hand, but uses their investigation of Justin Sun as a reason to delist WBTC. Both sides have their own opinions.
Although the federal court currently supports Coinbase’s removal of WBTC, the court also allows BiT Global to submit more evidence to continue the appeal. How both parties handle these issues will inevitably affect the future development of the industry.
[Disclaimer] There are risks in the market, so investment needs to be cautious. This article does not constitute investment advice and users should consider whether any opinions, views or conclusions contained in this article are appropriate for their particular circumstances. Invest accordingly and do so at your own risk.
This article is reprinted with permission from: (Lian News)
"The U.S. court supports Coinbase's delisting of WBTC! BiT can continue to appeal, and both sides have their own say." This article was first published on "Crypto City"
