Coinbase asks SEC for breakdown of cost of Gensler’s war on crypto

• Coinbase goes after SEC for details on cost of war on crypto.
• The exchange has filed a FOIA request asking for SEC’s documents during the leadership of former SEC chair Gary Gensler.

Coinbase has filed for a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request that seeks a detailed breakdown of what the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) spend on its “war on crypto.”

Specifically, the crypto exchange’s FOIA wants it made public just how much the SEC splashed as part of its regulation by enforcement approach to crypto between April 2021 and January 2025.

Coinbase outlines what it seeks in a filing on Monday, March 3, 2025.

What else is Coinbase seeking via this FOIA request?

The exchange wants to know how much the SEC spent on investigations, lawsuits and enforcement unit employees. Per the request, the regulator should provide the costs involved as it pursued digital asset related cases, secondary transactions, and staking and lending providers.

“We know the previous SEC’s regulation-by-enforcement approach cost Americans innovation, global leadership, and jobs, but how much did it cost in taxpayer dollars? Today, Coinbase submitted a FOIA request asking the SEC to explain how much its war on crypto cost taxpayers,” Coinbase chief legal officer Paul Grewal noted.

He added:

“What do we hope to find out? How many investigations and enforcement actions were brought – and how much they cost; how many employees worked on these investigations/enforcement actions – and how much they cost; how many third-party contractors were used in these investigations/enforcement actions – and how much they cost,” the Coinbase CLO added in a post on X.

The request comes amid a recent spree of announcements regarding the SEC’s dropping of several crypto cases and investigations. It includes the regulator’s lawsuit against Coinbase and the crypto exchange Gemini.

SEC, under a new leadership following Gary Genser’s exit in January 2025, has also closed investigations against Opensea, Robinhood, Uniswap and MetaMask.

According to Grewal, the FOIA request is down to the need for transparency, with American taxpayers having the right to know. Coinbase believes the current SEC leadership will provide the information.