Coinbase’s legal officer addresses XRP’s delisting

Coinbase’s chief legal officer, Paul Grewal, recently discussed the exchange’s decision to continue algorand (algo) trading despite the US SEC’s classification of the cryptocurrency as a security in the charges filed against Bittrex. 

Coinbase has yet to delist algo as it did with XRP, which raises problems in light of the SEC’s new charges against Bittrex stating that algo is a security, a move which has stirred up some questions.

These inquiries were put to Grewal by lawyer John Deaton in a recent episode of Crypto Law. During the conversation, Deaton mentioned that XRP supporters must fully understand how Coinbase evaluates listing requests. 

Grewal responded to the query by saying he empathizes with the XRP community’s plight. 

“I understand people are coming from, and I get where it can feel like there’s a double standard that’s been applied to a number of different situations.” 

Coinbase’s chief legal officer Paul Grewal

Grewal used Gary Gensler, the chairman of the SEC, to support his claim that the law and conditions are constantly changing. He reaffirmed Coinbase’s commitment to treating all customers fairly and upholding the rule of law, including XRP holders. He said that Coinbase supported Ripple with an amicus brief in November.

“What is most crucial is that we all realize this is a team sport. We are up against the most well-resourced adversary on the entire planet, that being the US government in the form of the SEC,” 

Paul Grewal

He further pointed out the SEC’s fallibility in its legal interpretations. He states that he thinks a political force is behind the latest enforcement wave and that everyone must work together and find common ground.

Ripple and Coinbase’s chief legal officers recently attended a professional meeting, sparking rumors of a collaboration between the two companies.

Proponents have remarked that they are still in the dark despite Grewal’s recent statements on why Coinbase has not delisted algo as it did with XRP. According to the XRP community, Coinbase’s CLO sidestepped the subject.