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FinanceCoinbase settles FOIA lawsuit with SEC; agency to pay $150,000 and revise record-retention policies
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Coinbase has settled a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), according to a Wall Street Journal op-ed by Coinbase's chief legal officer Paul Grewal. The lawsuit sought records from the SEC, including text messages between former Chair Gary Gensler and other officials that the agency said were 'automatically wiped' due to data retention policies. As part of the settlement, the SEC will pay $150,000 and revise its record-retention policies. Coinbase originally sued the SEC and the FDIC in 2024, alleging a coordinated effort by U.S. regulators to suppress crypto companies. The settlement follows major wins for Coinbase under President Donald Trump, including the dismissal of a prior SEC lawsuit and the passage of a stablecoin bill. The SEC did not immediately comment.
Source report
Reuters Wed, July 22, 2026 at 3:41 AM PDT | 1 min read
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July 22 (Reuters) – Coinbase has settled a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over records it sought from the agency, the cryptocurrency exchange's chief legal officer, Paul Grewal, said in a Wall Street Journal op-ed on Wednesday.
Grewal stated that the agency, which oversees corporate record-keeping, had lost text messages between former Chair Gary Gensler and other officials after a process the SEC described as having "automatically wiped" certain data.
As part of the settlement, the SEC will pay $150,000 and revise its record-retention policies, Grewal wrote.
The SEC did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Coinbase sued the SEC and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) in 2024, seeking documents it argued would demonstrate a coordinated effort by U.S. regulators to suppress crypto companies. The lawsuit sought additional communications from senior SEC officials, including Gensler.
Under U.S. President Donald Trump, Coinbase has achieved major victories against the SEC, including the dismissal of a significant lawsuit the regulator had brought against the company under President Joe Biden. The exchange also championed a stablecoin bill passed by the U.S. Congress.
Reuters has reported that the SEC is preparing more industry-friendly policies, including one that would allow crypto companies to offer blockchain-based stocks.
(Reporting by Hannah Lang in New York and Utkarsh Shetti in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)
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US SEC settles FOIA lawsuit with Coinbase over lost messages