TL;DR

• The recent shutdown of Silvergate and Signature Bank by regulators, plus the recent suits/Wells Notices filed against KuCoin, Tron, Binance, Kraken, and now Coinbase…

• This is, by all indications, a coordinated attack on the US blockchain industry.

• But blockchain isn't an American industry - it's a global one. Which means these US based blockchain businesses will just move offshore. Putting the US at a disadvantage.

• What's the right way to do it? Clear and fair, crypto specific regulatory guidelines that allow legitimate blockchain companies to thrive, while weeding out the bad actors.

Full Story

You know those 3D pictures? The ones where if you stare at the page long enough, an image forms and jumps out at you?

It feels like that's what's happening now with the broader financial world, and their understanding of the US' attack on blockchain.

The picture that's coming in to focus?

This is, by all indications, a coordinated attack.

Here's how that picture formed for us:

• The recent shutdown of Silvergate and Signature Bank, by regulators.
  
  These banks were the on/off ramps (from crypto to cash) for many US based crypto exchanges.
  
  No on/off ramps = no buying/selling crypto with/into US dollars, in the United States.
  

• The recent suits and 'Wells Notices' (aka 'we'll sue you if you don't do what we want' notices) filed against KuCoin, Tron, Binance, Kraken - and by association, Ethereum. (Plus, on a longer time frame, the SEC's case against Ripple).
  

• But the largest piece of the "something's definitely up here" puzzle arrived late Wednesday, when the SEC gave Coinbase a Wells Notice - alleging that the company's staking products constitute unregistered securities.

Here's why that last one is so damaging to the SEC's 'we're just trying to play fair' facade:

When a company goes public, they have to file an 'S1' - which is a document that is then approved/denied by the SEC.

Guess who's a public company, with an SEC approved S1, that references staking 56+ times?

Coinbase (hi, Gary 👋).

In fact, it's been two years since they filed - so the question everyone is asking is:

Why now, if not for a coordinated attack on the industry?

Here's why, anyway you slice it, this is all downright stupid:

Blockchain isn't an American industry - it's a global one.

If the US federal government runs blockchain out of town, the industry will just move elsewhere.

It won't stop, or even slow down (at least not in the long term).

These US businesses will just move offshore.

Like, for example, to the UK - where regulation is being steered to welcome blockchain with open arms.

Ok, but what's the right way to do it?

Fair question!

(There're plenty of bad actors in the blockchain industry that deserve their day in court).

Anthony Scaramucci put it beautifully:

"Crypto and blockchain need a trellis, not just a weed killer".

I.e. lay down clear and fair, crypto specific regulatory guidelines that allow legitimate blockchain companies to thrive, while weeding out the bad actors.

It's simple, but it ain't easy.

So where to from here?

Well, next step: Coinbase takes this thing to court and we watch them battle it out with the SEC.

Buckle up!