Coinbase says SEC set to drop enforcement case against the crypto exchange

The Securities & Exchange Commission of the United States is said to have agreed to dismiss its enforcement case against Coinbase Global Inc (NASDAQ: COIN).

Shares of the crypto firm are up more than 5.0% at the time of writing.

Speaking with CNBC today, Brian Armstrong – the company’s chief executive dubbed it a huge development not just for COIN but for the crypto market at large.

It’s a signal that the crypto industry will indeed get some regulatory clarity under the Trump administration, following years of unlawful attacks from “a small group of activists in the prior administration,” he added.

Despite today’s surge, Coinbase stock that could soon join the S&P 500 index is down roughly 10% versus its year-to-date high at writing.

Trump 2.0 could be a tailwind for Coinbase

Coinbase chief executive Brian Armstrong expects a “domino effect” in the crypto market as the new SEC continues to drop all the “bogus cases”.

The US regulator had accused Coinbase of operating an unregistered securities exchange in 2023. At the time, the company was charged with failure to register its crypto staking programme as well.

However, the lawsuit was brought on by Gary Gensler – the former head of the Securities & Exchange Commission.

The new US government is broadly expected to be pro-crypto.  

Note that an SEC representative refrained from commenting on the Coinbase update on Friday.

Coinbase had an exceptionally strong Q4

Trump’s promise of a friendlier environment for the crypto industry under his tenure helped Bitcoin surpass the closely watched $100,000 level in the weeks following election day.

A sharp interest in cryptocurrencies contributed to a whopping 130% year-on-year increase in Coinbase’s revenue in its fourth financial quarter.

The Nasdaq-listed firm handily topped Street estimates in its fiscal Q4 and painted a rosy picture of what the future holds as “the opportunity in front of us right now is unprecedented, and we’re well positioned to meet the moment.”

Coinbase shares, however, do not currently pay a dividend and are, therefore, unattractive for income investors.

Is it worth investing in COIN at current levels?

Coinbase stock is currently up some 70% versus early September but Wall Street continues to see significant further upside in shares of the crypto company.

The consensus rating on COIN sits at “overweight” with analysts calling or upside in the stock to $336 on average, which indicates potential for another 25% gain from current levels.

The Street-high target of $475 even acknowledges the possibility of Coinbase shares nearly doubling from here, particularly as Bitcoin continues to hit new milestones in 2025.

On Friday, Blockstream chief executive Adam Back said BTC is in the “early stages of a bull market”.

Back sees ample room for the world’s largest cryptocurrency to run further to the upside on the back of strong retail and institutional inflows.