George Osborne Joins Coinbase Advisory Board Amid Regulatory Challenges.
Coinbase Global Inc., a leading cryptocurrency exchange, has announced the addition of George Osborne, former Chancellor of the Exchequer of the United Kingdom, to its advisory board. This move comes as Coinbase faces increasing regulatory scrutiny in the United States.
In response to growing regulatory pressures, crypto firms increasingly bring former politicians on board. Osborne joins a distinguished group on Coinbase’s Global Advisory Board, which includes ex-U.S. Senator Patrick Toomey, former Secretary of Defense Mark T. Esper, and ex-Congressperson Sean Patrick Maloney.
Osborne, the UK’s finance minister from 2010 to 2016, has a substantial background in government and international affairs. After leaving government, he advised BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, until 2021. Osborne is also the current chairman of the British Museum.
Commenting on his new role, Osborne expressed enthusiasm about the innovative developments in finance, particularly the transformative potential of blockchains in financial markets and online transactions. He looks forward to contributing to Coinbase’s efforts to build a new future for financial services.
Coinbase has encountered legal challenges, notably being sued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in June last year. The SEC’s lawsuit alleges that Coinbase operated without proper registration, avoiding the required disclosures for securities markets. The lawsuit also claims that several tokens listed on Coinbase, including Solana (SOL), Cardano (ADA), and Polygon (MATIC), are unregistered securities.
Despite these challenges, a Bloomberg senior litigation analyst, Elliott Stein, estimates that Coinbase has a 70% chance of the lawsuit being entirely dismissed, based on a post from Jan. 19.
Osborne’s appointment is seen as a strategic move by Coinbase to navigate the complex regulatory landscape and leverage his experience in government and finance to advocate for the crypto industry.
