According to a report from Bloomberg, Brian Armstrong, the chief executive of crypto exchange Coinbase, was scheduled to have a meeting on Wednesday with House Democrats.
The agenda for the meeting between the CEO and Democrats from the House of Representatives was to have a discussion about legislation on digital assets and other issues, like privacy, national security, tax, and climate.
The meeting
A political faction called New Democrat Coalition which comprises of over 100 democrats was also said to attend the meeting.
The aim of the faction is to ensure innovation, growth and develop policies that are fiscally responsible.
This news comes at a time when Coinbase is embroiled in a legal battle with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The securities regulator has accused the company of running an unregistered securities exchange and using its staking services to sell unregistered securities.
The agency has recently initiated a regulatory crackdown on companies in the crypto industry, something it had initiated back in 2020 with Ripple Labs.
The XRP token of the company has been labeled as an unregistered security by the SEC. According to crypto companies, the problem in both cases is unclear regulation.
The confusion
William Hinman, a director of the SEC, had given a speech in which he stated that Ethereum cannot be categorized as a security.
It is important to note that this is not the official stance of the SEC. According to both Coinbase and Ripple, this speech has resulted in confusion.
This is because it has made it difficult to figure out what is considered a security and what is classified as a cryptocurrency.
A recent ruling from Federal Judge Annalisa Torres saw the XRP token not be categorized as a security, as long as it was sold to the public and not institutions.
Coinbase stock experienced a rally after the Ripple ruling was announced and its legal team also saw its optimism renewed.
However, analysts have warned that even after the XRP ruling, it does not mean that Coinbase does not have issues to deal with.
Coinbase’s CEO
As far as the CEO of Coinbase is concerned, he is still focused on demanding regulatory clarity, particularly in light of the crypto exchange’s woes.
Back in March, Armstrong had taken to Twitter to share his excitement about working with regulators and governments globally who want to come up with clear rules for regulating the crypto space.
Since then, Armstrong has had meetings with Andrew Griffith, the Economic Secretary and City Minister in the United Kingdom.
It now appears that Capitol Hill is the next target for the crypto exchange’s CEO. But, it remains to be seen whether it would help his company in the long run or not.
Due to the lawsuit, Coinbase has already announced a suspension for its staking services in several states, until they have some clarity.