Bank of America analysts downgrade stocks of crypto exchange Coinbase

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Bank of America has changed the rating of Coinbase shares to "below average" in connection with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) lawsuit.

Bank analysts state:The SEC is paying increased attention to platforms that allow trading not only in bitcoin and ether, but in other crypto assets that the regulator has already considered or may consider unregistered securities. The SEC is of particular interest to companies that provide staking services: when a client agrees to block their crypto assets for a certain period of time in order to profit from them. The regulator believes that this practice is similar to an investment contract and must comply with certain regulatory parameters.

Analysts at Bank of America noted that about 23%Coinbase's net revenue in the first quarter came from non-bitcoin or ether transactions, with about 10% coming from staking rewards. Since the beginning of the year, cryptocurrency trading volumes on the trading floor have been noticeably lower than in 2022, despite the market recovery.

U.S. Regulator Claims Against CoinbaseGlobal is that the exchange has not registered as a broker, stock exchange or clearing agency. Bank of America experts are confident that this could jeopardize the business model of Coinbase.

According to last year's data from Bank of America, crypto investors began to prefer stablecoins pegged to the US dollar or gold, due to the prolonged recession in the United States.