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Vermont follows SEC’s lead, drops staking legal action against Coinbase

US state Vermont has dropped its “show cause order” against crypto exchange Coinbase for allegedly offering unregistered securities to users through a staking service.

Vermont’s Department of Financial Regulation said in a March 13 order that in light of the US Securities and Exchange Commission tossing out its case on Feb. 28, it would follow suit and rescind its action against Coinbase without prejudice.

“The SEC has announced the formation of a new task force to, among other things, provide guidance for the promulgation of rules regarding the regulation of cryptocurrency products and services,” the department said.

Coinbase

Vermont’s financial regulator has decided to drop its legal action against Coinbase. Source: Vermont’s Department of Financial Regulation

“In light of the dismissal of the Federal Action and likelihood of new federal regulatory guidance, the Division believes it would be most efficient and in the best interests of justice to rescind the pending Show Cause Order, without prejudice.”

On the same day the SEC filed its lawsuit in June 2023, the US states of Alabama, California, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, New Jersey, South Carolina, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin said they were launching legal proceedings against Coinbase.

The show cause order asserted that Coinbase was violating securities laws by offering staking to its users without a license and demanded the exchange provide a reason why the courts shouldn’t hit them with an order directing them to halt the service. 

Now that Vermont has opted out, Coinbase chief legal officer Paul Grewal said in a March 13 statement to X that the other states with staking actions should take a “page from Vermont’s playbook.”

Coinbase

Source: Paul Grewal

“As we have always said: staking services are not securities. We applaud Vermont for embracing progress and providing clarity for its citizens who own digital assets,” he said.

“Our work isn’t over. Congress must seize the bipartisan momentum we’re seeing across the House and Senate to pass comprehensive legislation that takes into account the novel features of digital assets, such as staking,” he added.

Related: YouTuber says SEC will recommend dropping lawsuit over 2018 token ICO

A growing number of firms facing legal action from the SEC have had their cases dismissed in the wake of former SEC Chair Gary Gensler, who took a hardline stance toward crypto, resigning on Jan. 20.

Crypto trading firm Cumberland DRW was among the latest to have its case dropped on March 4, while the regulator is reportedly wrapping up its enforcement action against Ripple Labs after more than four years.

Grewal has also launched a request under the Freedom of Information Act to find out how many enforcement actions were brought against crypto firms under Gensler’s tenure between April 17, 2021, and Jan. 20, 2025, and the cost to the taxpayer. 

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Why Boris’s best mate is off to Reform

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Why Boris's best mate is off to Reform

👉Listen to Politics at Sam and Anne’s on your podcast app👈       

Former Conservative chairman and friend of Boris Johnson – Sir Jake Berry – is defecting to Reform UK, causing more problems for Tory leader Kemi Badenoch.

On today’s episode, Sky News’ Sam Coates and Politico’s Anne McElvoy discuss if his defection will divide parts of Reform policy.

Elsewhere, the Anglo-French summit gets under way, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer hoping to announce a migration deal with French President Emmanuel Macron to deter small boat crossings.

Plus, chatter around Whitehall that No10 are considering a pre-summer reshuffle, but will it have any value?

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Australia to test CBDCs, stablecoins in next stage of crypto play

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Australia to test CBDCs, stablecoins in next stage of crypto play

Australia to test CBDCs, stablecoins in next stage of crypto play

The trial is part of Project Acacia, an initiative from the RBA exploring how digital money and tokenization could support financial markets in Australia.

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Starmer and Macron agree need for ‘new deterrent’ to stop small boat crossings

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Starmer and Macron agree need for 'new deterrent' to stop small boat crossings

Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron have agreed the need for a “new deterrent” to deter small boats crossings in the Channel, Downing Street has said.

The prime minister met Mr Macron this afternoon as part of the French president’s state visit to the UK, which began on Tuesday.

High up the agenda for the two leaders is the need to tackle small boat crossings in the Channel, which Mr Macron said yesterday was a “burden” for both the UK and France.

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The small boats crisis is a pressing issue for the prime minister, given that more than 20,000 migrants crossed the English Channel to the UK in the first six months of this year – a rise of almost 50% on the number crossing in 2024.

Sir Keir is hoping he can reach a deal for a one-in one-out return treaty with France, ahead of the UK-France summit on Thursday, which will involve ministerial teams from both nations.

The deal would see those crossing the Channel illegally sent back to France in exchange for Britain taking in any asylum seeker with a family connection in the UK.

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However, it is understood the deal is still in the balance, with some EU countries unhappy about France and the UK agreeing on a bilateral deal.

French newspaper Le Monde reports that up to 50 small boat migrants could be sent back to France each week, starting from August, as part of an agreement between Sir Keir and Mr Macron.

A statement from Downing Street said: “The prime minister met the French President Emmanuel Macron in Downing Street this afternoon.

“They reflected on the state visit of the president so far, agreeing that it had been an important representation of the deep ties between our two countries.

“Moving on to discuss joint working, they shared their desire to deepen our partnership further – from joint leadership in support of Ukraine to strengthening our defence collaboration and increasing bilateral trade and investment.”

It added: “The leaders agreed tackling the threat of irregular migration and small boat crossings is a shared priority that requires shared solutions.

“The prime minister spoke of his government’s toughening of the system in the past year to ensure rules are respected and enforced, including a massive surge in illegal working arrests to end the false promise of jobs that are used to sell spaces on boats.

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“The two leaders agreed on the need to go further and make progress on new and innovative solutions, including a new deterrent to break the business model of these gangs.”

Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, seized on the statement to criticise Labour for scrapping the Conservatives’ Rwanda plan, which the Tories claim would have sent asylum seekers “entering the UK illegally” to Rwanda.

He said in an online post: “We had a deterrent ready to go, where every single illegal immigrant arriving over the Channel would be sent to Rwanda.

“But Starmer cancelled this before it had a chance to start.

“Now, a year later, he’s realised he made a massive mistake. That’s why numbers have surged and this year so far has been the worst in history for illegal channel crossings.

“Starmer is weak and incompetent and he’s lost control of our borders.”

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