Coinbase continues with SEC lawsuit over denied FOIA request

On Tuesday, Coinbase moved to advance its case against the US Securities and Exchange Commission over alleged violations to the Freedom of Information Act.

Per the latest filing, Coinbase and History Associates (the consulting firm Coinbase retained) are now requesting a pre-trial conference to discuss a proposed motion for a partial summary judgment in the case.

Coinbase hired History Associates in 2023 to assist in retrieving records from the SEC and FDIC. Both requests were denied, and History Associates sued both agencies in June 2024 in an effort to force them to hand over the documents. In both suits, History Associates is the plaintiff, and Coinbase is named as a related party.

Coinbase specifically sought documents from the SEC related to three investigations: Ethereum, Zachary Coburn — the EtherDelta founder charged in 2018 for allegedly operating an unregistered exchange — and Enigma MPC. These documents, Coinbase hopes, will reveal details about how the SEC classifies cryptocurrencies.

The SEC’s investigations into Coburn and Enigma MPC, History Associates wrote in its initial complaint, are “long-closed,” so there should be “no potential interference with law enforcement activities” should the agency hand over the documents.

In its response to the complaint, the SEC denied allegations that it lacks authority to oversee the crypto industry. The agency also asserts that it “did not improperly withhold any documents under FOIA.”

Read more from our opinion section: The SEC has been wrong about ‘crypto asset securities’ all along

Most recently, the SEC has said it will conduct a repeat review process of the documents in question to determine whether or not they can be released. The initial exemption they cited in 2023, FOIA Exemption 7(A), “may” no longer apply. This process, they say, could take three years to begin unless History Associates agrees to narrow its request, which it has not.

In its proposed motion for summary judgment, which has not been filed, History Associates says it will ask the court not to grant the SEC any additional time extensions.

Paul Grewal, Coinbase’s chief legal officer, on Tuesday said the SEC’s “constantly changing story” raises a question of what they are “hiding, and why?”

The SEC did not immediately return Blockworks’ request for comment.

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