Intro/Disclaimer: Since late 2022, I’ve prepared weekly updates for attorneys at my firm to stay abreast of the latest Web3 legal developments. The biggest stories are included in Bi-Weekly posts on the firm’s BitBlog, where we provide tl;dr overviews and insights into the biggest stories from the past two weeks. I post the weekly updates on my personal blog every Tuesday, where I also provide links to more obscure legal developments and otherwise discuss industry trends and stories. Please note, the views and opinions I express, both on BitBlog and my personal blog, are solely my own. They do not reflect the official stance or endorsement of my firm.
Starting off with a self-brag, Polsinelli was recently ranked as one of the top firms in the Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies category by the Chambers FinTech Guide 2025. When I joined Polsinelli, I had an offer at a larger firm for more compensation, but Polsinelli expressed an interest is helping me grow out my own personal Web3 practice and wanted me to be a integral part of their exiting Blockchain+ team. While I have seen firsthand how much the practice has grown at the firm, these types of external affirmations are still nice. I get to work with clients building some of the coolest products/services in Web3 alongside a team of some of the best lawyers in the space. Couldn’t be more proud of the work we did in 2024 and what is on the horizon for 2025.
In other news, Coinbase is being sued over delisting a competitor product, funding rounds and strategic partnerships are heating up, and people are looking ahead to 2025 U.S. legal policy issues for the industry.
Here’s everything that happened last week in Web3 legal:
Coinbase Sued Over Wrapped Bitcoin Delisting
Coinbase has been sued over its decision to delist wrapped Bitcoin (“wBTC”) while at the same time releasing Coinbase’s own competitive wrapped Bitcoin product (“cbBTC”). For those unfamiliar, Bitcoin can be “wrapped” by exchanging one Bitcoin on the Bitcoin network for a token on a different network which can serve as a proxy for the deposited Bitcoin and be exchanged at any time for that same Bitcoin back. This allows users to use their digital asset on different networks. The providers of the wrapped proxy token charge fees on the exchanges, and in return for those fees promise to keep the Bitcoin exchanged for the wrapped version of that Bitcoin safe. The lawsuit accuses Coinbase of violating various anti-trust laws by delisting a competitor product over feigned security concerns.
Tl;dr: This is certainly an interesting case which will be worth following. The Complaint itself is worth reading, if nothing more than for the paragraphs mocking memecoins, including “The webpage for Dogwifhat announces proudly that the cryptocurrency is “LITERALLY JUST A DOG WIF A HAT,” with a parody of promotional language crossed out in red. A scrolling ticker across the top of the website repeatedly informs purchases that “I mean bro, it’s literally a dog wif a hat.” The dog does, indeed, have a hat—and Coinbase chose to list this coin six days before delisting wBTC.” That paragraph and a few others are just good lawyering.
Other Stories
FDIC Ordered to Reassess Redactions: Last week I had an update about the FDIC’s comical redactions, and now the Court has taken notice ordering the FDIC “cannot simply blanket redact everything that is not an article or preposition.” Sunshine is the best disinfectant.
2025 House Financial Services Chair Announced: As expected, Representative French Hill will be taking the gavel from current Chair Patrick McHenry when McHenry retires from public office in January. Rep. Hill was the head of the digital asset subcommittee, so he will be especially focused on that during his time leading the group.
Avalanches Raises with $250 Million Private Token Sale: Avalanche has sold $250 million of locked tokens, which I love for both buyers and sellers of the layer-1 blockchain seeking to be a mainstay in Web3 gaming. Especially with games like Off the Grid building their tokens on that network.
Magic Eden Opens Token Claim: Magic Eden has made me a liar and released a token after I was willing to bet there was no chance they were going to under the current administration. Either way, happy for everybody that continued buying NFTs in the bear market getting a little stimmy for the culture.
Crypto on 60 Minutes: If you are wondering why your aunt has been texting you about crypto out of the blue, it is because it was covered in 60 minutes last week. Kind of lame they covered XRP instead of Fart Coin, though. One of those is the future of finance, and I think we all know which one it is.
Commissioner Crenshaw Appointment: SEC Commissioner Crenshaw has been an opponent of crypto, going so far as to issue a dissent against the approval of a Bitcoin ETF even after the D.C. Circuit said not approving was arbitrary and capricious. So don’t think many in the industry are upset when her rushed re-confirmation hearing was thwarted by Senate rules.
Circle Partners with Binance: Circle is already partially owned by Coinbase, and is now apparently partnering with Binance. I cannot wait until it goes public so I can buy all the Circle stock I can possibly get my hands on. Rocket ship.
Debanking Stays Front of Mind: We need products like stablecoins from Circle when you dig into the issue of debanking as recently covered in the New York Times and Fortune. There needs to be ways for people to self-custody their cash while being able to participate in a digital economy. Stablecoins provide that.
Ten SEC Reforms for Crypto: I enjoyed this article laying out ten proposed reforms at the SEC which would protect consumers while encouraging American innovation.
Japanese Crypto Exchange Goes Public: Japanese crypto exchange Coincheck went public on the Nasdaq through a $1.3 billion SPAC merger. First shoe to drop, as more crypto companies will be looking to go public after the turnover at the SEC, including stablecoin giant Circle and others.
Compound Plaintiffs Seek Service Via Community Proposal: The Plaintiffs in the Compound class action are seeking to serve the DAO via proposal on the DAO’s governance page, which anybody with the necessary tokens can make. We have seen service via NFT, but this is a new one.
Article on Tornado Cash: I see a well written article on how the current DOJ stance towards mixing technologies is legally incorrect, I include that in my updates. Dems the rules.
Conclusion
If you have any questions or would like me to write about anything else, let me know on Twitter (X?) or Warpcast. As always, I am an attorney, I am not your attorney. For legal advice, you should always consult (and pay for) an attorney.
The NFTtorney 