Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is launching a new TV campaign this week to promote the future of crypto in Washington DC, despite its ongoing fight with US regulators. CEO Brian Armstrong features in a two-minute black and white video, in which he speaks about the benefits of crypto and claims its “naive view” is missing the forest through the trees. Armstrong compares crypto to the Internet in its early days, and says that “regardless of what you think about it, it’s not going anywhere”. He also warns of future national security concerns, as there are other countries embracing the technology.
There will be four ads featuring Armstrong, according to Coinbase, and they will appear on popular Sunday shows. Coinbase was served a Wells notice by the US Securities and Exchange Commission in March, signalling that they are ready to recommend formal charges. Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal responded to the SEC’s Wells Notice in a video, saying that the company has asked for the SEC’s views on how their industry applies to securities laws, but they have mostly gotten “silence in response”. Meanwhile, SEC Chair Gary Gensler has called on crypto exchanges to register, and said that they tend to be “rife with conflicts”. Lawmakers in Washington DC are currently working on bills to regulate crypto, but the outcome is yet to be seen.
