Coinbase shares surge 18% on the back of Binance's demise - Benefits Galore!!
TLDR Coinbase (COIN) shares hit an 18-month high after Binance and its former CEO Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty to US money laundering and sanctions violations.
Brian Armstrong, Coinbase’s CEO, states, “We’ve had a moment recently, with the enforcement action against Binance, that’s allowing us to turn the page on that and hopefully close that chapter of crypto’s history.”
Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart found that Coinbase holds 13 of the 19 spot crypto ETFs pending with the SEC.
Following the U.S. federal government’s $4.3 billion settlement with Binance on Tuesday, another exchange appears to be resuming its reign as crypto’s king: Coinbase.
As of Monday morning, shares of the New York-based exchange were up around 18% from the previous week, from around $100 to over $118. When asked about this, Brian Armstrong, the CEO of Coinbase, said:
We’ve had a moment recently, with the enforcement action against Binance, that’s allowing us to turn the page on that and hopefully close that chapter of crypto’s history Brian Armstrong
Coinbase market shares spring up
Over the last year, Coinbase has reaped considerable benefits from pending U.S. spot Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
According to Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart, Coinbase is the custodian for 13 of the 19 spot crypto ETFs that have been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Hand up 🙋♂️I got some of this data wrong. Just took an hour to update/double check some of this. If you're an issuer/custodian/whatever and some of the data on this list is wrong or missing — feel free to reach out
Sorry @HeleneBraunn !! https://t.co/0O7e3IfVtx pic.twitter.com/ydagbwUpVj — James Seyffart (@JSeyff) November 27, 2023
On the other hand, the SEC has filed a complaint against Coinbase, alleging that the exchange failed to register with the agency and featured many tokens that breached US securities rules.
Coinbase has moved to dismiss the litigation, questioning the SEC’s power to regulate cryptocurrency.
Coinbase, which was founded in 2012, has long promoted itself as the “good guy” of cryptocurrency, courting US regulators and rejecting the urge to offer fad cryptocurrencies that regulators like the Securities and Exchange Commission consider unregistered securities.
Zhao, who previously worked as a programmer for the Tokyo Stock Exchange and Bloomberg Trading, created Binance in 2017 and quickly eroded Coinbase’s brief market dominance following the collapse of Mt. Gox, once the go-to exchange for trading Bitcoin.
With an undisclosed headquarters and a willingness to skirt regulatory restrictions, Zhao quickly built Binance into a crypto titan that took over both the simple purchase and sale of digital currencies as well as the market for more intricate financial instruments built on top of crypto prices, according to most measures.
Brian Armstrong reacts to Binance’s demise
Armstrong’s remarks and Coinbase’s stock price rise come as the enforcement action against Binance, which required CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao to stand down and plead guilty to U.S. criminal charges, creates an opportunity for Armstrong’s firm to acquire market dominance. He adds that:
Building a company offshore, skirting regulation, it’s just not going to work. Brian Armstrong
Zhao’s exchange has seen its market share decline as a result of the continuing disputes.
Coinbase, on the other hand, is not immune to legal challenges. The SEC sued Armstrong’s exchange one day after suing Zhao and Binance, and the case is still ongoing. He told CNBC that:
We feel very good about our case with the SEC and our chances there […] Regardless of the outcome, it’s going to help us with our goal of getting regulatory clarity. Brian Armstrong
As Coinbase takes hold of the crypto market. CZ remains in grave uncertainties in the United States.
As with FTX, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission continues to investigate evidence that Binance.US and CZ may have had a backdoor through which they could potentially control customer assets.
Attorneys for Binance.US reportedly argued in federal court on November 27 that the securities regulator lacks evidence of asset misuse and asked U.S. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui to consider terminating the regulator’s investigation into possible fraud.