Lawyers for Coinbase, a well-known cryptocurrency exchange in the U.S., are asking a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit from BiT Global. This lawsuit is about Coinbase’s choice to delist wrapped Bitcoin, also known as wBTC.
The complaint was filed back in December 2024. It claims that Coinbase caused “antitrust injury” by removing wBTC to promote its own product, cbBTC. In a filing dated January 21, Coinbase requested the court to throw out BiT Global's case, pointing out BiT’s ties to Tron’s founder, Justin Sun.
Coinbase’s legal team stated that they decided to delist wBTC because they were concerned that control of wBTC might end up with Mr. Sun. They argued, “The Court should dismiss BiT’s complaint in full.” They believe the case has fundamental issues, like Coinbase not having market power since BiT is dominant, and no evidence of any wrongdoing.
In November 2024, Coinbase announced it would stop trading wBTC starting on December 19. BiT Global responded by filing a lawsuit on December 13. They claimed that Coinbase’s decision harmed the wBTC market. A judge, however, did not grant a restraining order to stop the delisting.
BitGo, the custodian holding the Bitcoin reserves for wBTC, mentioned in August 2024 that it would share control with BiT Global in partnership with Sun. Coinbase raised concerns in court about complaints made by U.S. authorities against Sun.
According to the filing on January 21, the court will hear the motion to dismiss on April 3. Cointelegraph reached out to BiT Global for comments but hadn’t received a response by the time of publication.
Additionally, Coinbase is dealing with a lawsuit from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed in 2023. This case is currently on hold while an appeal is pending in the Second Circuit. Coinbase is also actively seeking clarity from the SEC regarding rules for crypto companies operating in the U.S.