The events began to unfold on June 5, 2023, when the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed lawsuits against Binance.com, the world's largest crypto exchange, and Coinbase, the largest crypto exchange in the U.S.
Though the lawsuits cover various categories of cryptocurrencies, and the SEC's specific allegations against the two companies differ in many respects, the underlying intent is clear. The SEC explicitly asserts that the business operations of both Coinbase and Binance fall under the category of securities market trading and should, therefore, be subject to SEC oversight.