Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and his executive team publicly refuse and strongly oppose the latest cryptocurrency market structure bill proposed by the Senate Banking Committee.
Brian Armstrong's core point is: “We'd rather have no bill than a bad bill.”
The main reason Coinbase refuses to compromise touches on the fundamental survival of the cryptocurrency industry in the future:
• Defend DeFi and Privacy: The bill contains provisions that could effectively prohibit decentralized finance (DeFi) or require DeFi protocols to provide the government with unlimited access to financial records, which contradicts the decentralized intention of Web3.
• Defending 'Yield' Rights (Stablecoins): The legislation attempts to prohibit or restrict the yield generated by stablecoins. This is a core interest for Coinbase (a significant part of its income comes from USDC interest) and is seen by ordinary users as depriving them of the right to asset appreciation, viewed as a means for banks to eliminate competitors (crypto companies).
• Opposing the 'Tokenized Stocks' Ban: The legislation attempts to ban tokenized securities, which directly stifles the future of RWA (real-world assets on-chain), a trillion-dollar sector.
• Competition for Regulatory Jurisdiction: The legislation tends to grant the SEC (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission) more power, weakening the position of the CFTC (Commodity Futures Trading Commission), while the industry generally believes that the SEC's enforcement style is very unfriendly to crypto innovation.
Market Sentiment: Complex and cautious
• Legislative Stalemate: Coinbase's opposition has caused the bill to stall in the Senate, meaning that the U.S. will not introduce a clear regulatory framework for cryptocurrency in the short term. The market dislikes 'uncertainty,' which may lead institutional funds to remain cautious in the short term, resulting in market liquidity not being as vigorous as expected.
• Industry Split: This event has exposed the divisions within the industry. Some companies like Ripple tend to compromise for compliance status, while Coinbase has chosen to stand firm. This 'civil war' may weaken the overall lobbying power of the crypto industry in Washington.
• Price Volatility: In the short term, the lack of favorable legislation may limit the speed at which BTC and ETH can reach new highs, especially tokens related to RWA and DeFi may be emotionally suppressed.
• Coinbase's strategy is clear: buy time. They hope that after the mid-term elections in 2026, a more crypto-friendly Congress will emerge to formulate truly beneficial legislation for innovation.
• Market Prediction: This means that the second half of 2026 to 2027 may become the time window for the real release of regulatory dividends. Before that, the market will continue to oscillate upwards in the game between 'regulatory enforcement' and 'technological innovation.'
Medium to Long-term Market Impact: Trading time for space
The refusal of Coinbase executives to state their position is, in fact, a battle for the 'soul' of cryptocurrency.
• If there is compromise: Only a few currencies like BTC and ETH can survive, but the innovation of Web3 will die, and the market will become a subsidiary of traditional banks.
• Now refusing: Although facing the pain of a regulatory vacuum in the short term, it has preserved the spark for a full explosion of Web3 in the future.
Impact on Investors:
• Firmly hold core assets: The uncertainty of regulation has further highlighted BTC's 'anti-censorship' and 'hedging' properties.
• Focus on DeFi Recovery: Once the market realizes that Coinbase has successfully blocked malicious laws against DeFi, the DeFi sector may experience a wave of 'resurrection' recovery.
• Patience is key: Do not expect regulatory benefits to come 'overnight.' The future bull market will be driven more by technological innovation (such as AI+Crypto) rather than relying solely on the implementation of compliance expectations.