Paul Grewal, who has served as Coinbase’s chief legal officer since 2020, announced that he will transition to an advisory role at the exchange starting July 31.
In Thursday’s X thread and Grewal’s LinkedIn post he said Following his departure at the end of the month, Coinbase’s legal vice presidents Molly Abraham and Ryan VanGrack will assume modern roles as general counsel and vice president, respectively. Abraham he said that he will “take over” the exchange’s legal team.
Source: Paweł Grewal
Whoever steps into Grewal’s shoes as the exchange’s next legal director will likely have a significant influence on cryptocurrency policy and regulation in the US. As CLO, Grewal led the exchange’s legal team during the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s 2023 enforcement action, which alleged operated as an unregistered stock exchange, broker and clearing agency.
Since the 2023 lawsuit, which was later dismissed under the Trump administration, Coinbase and its executives have developed sturdy relationships with the White House and lawmakers advocating for cryptocurrency policy. The company is a major donor to the Fairshake political action committee (PAC), which funds media that supports politicians it deems “pro-crypto,” and CEO Brian Armstrong has met with U.S. President Donald Trump and also advocated for cryptocurrency-related legislation in Congress.
Related: CLARITY Act could happen as soon as next week: Coinbase exec
Grewal added that he would announce the potential modern position “in due course.” Cointelegraph reached out to Coinbase for additional details about Grewal’s departure, but did not receive an immediate response.
Coinbase will continue to push the structure of the U.S. cryptocurrency market
Many Coinbase executives, including Armstrong, are pushing lawmakers in Congress to pass the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (CLARITY), which is expected to largely shift the oversight and regulation of digital assets from the SEC to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
The U.S. Senate is in the state phase until Monday, when lawmakers return and potentially begin voting on the bill.
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