Why Coinbase Pulled Support for the Market Structure Bill

Summary

Coinbase VP of U.S. Policy Kara Calvert joins CoinDesk to explain why Coinbase withdrew support for the Senate market-structure bill. She cites fatal flaws around stablecoin rewards, SEC exemptive authority, DeFi protections, and tokenized equities, arguing a bad bill is worse than no bill. Calvert remains optimistic that legislation can advance before midterms and stresses that the banking and agriculture committee bills must be stitched together, including CFTC spot-market authority over digital assets.

• Coinbase pulled support for the market-structure bill after a short review window.
• Kara Calvert says stablecoin rewards and SEC exemptive relief were key sticking points.
• She warns Section 505 could create a de facto ban on tokenized equities.
• DeFi and developer protections need more time and careful rulemaking.
• The agriculture bill would give the CFTC spot-market authority over digital assets.
• CFTC funding and staffing remain concerns; user fees are seen as helpful.
• Calvert expects legislation can still move before midterms.
• She says the banking and agriculture bills need to converge to bring Democrats along.