Share this article

Binance SEC Lawsuit Could be Preview of What Coinbase May Face, Berenberg Says

At least 37% of Coinbase's net revenue could be at risk if that exchange is subject to charges from the SEC, said one analyst.

Updated Jun 6, 2023, 10:50 a.m. Published Jun 5, 2023, 9:02 p.m.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong (CoinDesk screen grab, with permission of Coinbase)
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong (CoinDesk screen grab, with permission of Coinbase)

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) lawsuit against Binance could be a preview of what may be coming down the road for rival crypto exchange Coinbase (COIN), Berenberg analyst Mark Palmer wrote in a note on Monday.

"We observe that several of the details of the lawsuit that the commission filed against Binance echo those it previously filed against crypto exchanges Bittrex and Kraken, and we believe these cases in aggregate represent a preview of the action that is likely to be filed against COIN," said Palmer.

STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters

Read more: SEC Sues Crypto Exchange Binance and CEO Changpeng Zhao, Alleging Multiple Securities Violations

The SEC alleged in its suit that Binance, its CEO Changpeng "CZ" Zhao and Binance.US offered unregistered securities to the general public in the form of the BNB token and Binance-linked BUSD stablecoin, and that Binance's staking service violated securities law.

jwp-player-placeholder

The SEC action led to large declines across the board for crypto markets on Monday, including Coinbase, which closed the session down about 9.1% to $58.71.

In March, Coinbase itself received a warning from the SEC that it may soon receive enforcement action tied to its listing of potential unregistered securities. "We estimate that at least 37% of COIN's net revenue would be at risk if the SEC were to target the company's crypto token trading and staking operations," noted Palmer, who continued with a hold rating and $55 price target on the stock.

Coinbase currently has 11 buy ratings, 7 holds and 6 sell ratings, according to FactSet data.

"We believe investors should be focusing on whether COIN would have the ability to successfully pivot its business model and geographic focus if it were forced to curtail or cease a large portion of its business activities in the U.S. as a result of an SEC enforcement action," wrote Palmer.

Read more: Coinbase Praises Canada’s Crypto Approach as U.S. Regulatory Pressure Intensifies




Більше для вас

Protocol Research: GoPlus Security

GP Basic Image

Що варто знати:

  • As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M.
  • GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month.
  • Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B.

More For You

Exodus joins stablecoin race with MoonPay-backed digital dollar

100 dollar bill on table (Live Richer/Unsplash/Modified by CoinDesk)

The public crypto wallet firm joins Circle and PayPal in issuing stablecoins.

What to know:

  • Exodus is launching a fully reserved, USD-backed stablecoin with MoonPay to power self-custodial payments in its crypto wallet app.
  • The stablecoin will support Exodus Pay, a new feature enabling users to spend and send digital dollars without relying on centralized exchanges.
  • With the launch, Exodus joins a short list of public companies, including PayPal and Circle, backing stablecoin products.