Coinbase issues subpoena, seeks Gensler’s emails during SEC chairmanship

Crypto exchange Coinbase has changed tactics in an effort to subpoena Gary Gensler, chairman of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission — and now he's seeking his personal connection while serving as chairman.

Coinbase's lawyers initially argued that access to Gensler's private conversations — before and during his tenure as SEC chairman — was an “appropriate source of discovery” to build their defense against the securities regulator's lawsuit against them.

Coinbase filed on July 15 after Judge Kathryn Polk Fayla refused to grant Coinbase's request last week to seek access to Gensler's connections during his tenure as SEC chairman.

“Regarding the subpoena for Mr. Gensler, Coinbase has decided to produce Mr. Gensler's documents only during his tenure as SEC Chairman.”

Gensler became SEC chairman in April 2021, but Coinbase initially sought access to Gensler's connections from 2017, a year before Gensler began teaching a “Blockchain and Money” course at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2018.

Coinbase has argued that access to Gensler's private conversations is crucial to understanding how his views on crypto-related regulatory issues have changed over time.

Judge Falia, however, said she had a “strong view of the disproportionate burden of cross-examination on Mr. Gensler's statements made before he became chairman.”

Coinbase's opening brief for enforcement is due on July 23, while the SEC will have until August 5 to respond.

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The SEC sued Coinbase in June 2023, listing 13 tokens for violating federal securities laws, and Coinbase has been operating as an “unregistered securities broker” since 2019 — two years before its initial public offering in April 2021.

Coinbase argues that the tokens listed on its exchange should not be considered securities, arguing that they fall outside SEC regulations.

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