Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has asked a US district court to review the “governing issue” raised by the SEC as part of their lawsuit. 🏛️ The question concerns whether the investment contract requires “something contractual”. Coinbase says it requires it, while the SEC says otherwise.

This comes after Judge Katherine Failla rejected Coinbase's motion to dismiss an SEC case accusing the exchange of operating without registration.

If the court approves the appeal, it could have a significant impact on the case, which has been ongoing since June 2023.

Coinbase explains that this is because the SEC asserted that Coinbase's cryptocurrency transactions were investment contracts "despite the absence of any purported contractual obligations."

If the issue is reversed, the SEC's substantive claims, which constitute the majority of the complaint's factual allegations, will be vacated.

However, despite all this, Coinbase recently scored a major victory in a civil lawsuit where plaintiffs alleged that the exchange offered and sold them unregistered securities.