Coinbase is a cryptocurrency exchange headquartered at San Francisco California, was founded in June 2012 by Brian Armstrong and Fred Ehrsam. Coinbase broker exchanges of Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic and Litecoin with fiat currencies in around 32 countries, and bitcoin transactions and storage in 190 countries worldwide. In the recent news, Coinbase has appointed Brian Brooks as their Chief Legal Officer.
The firm is focused on expanding their legal, compliance and government affairs capabilities as they plan for the further growth of their firm in the cryptocurrency business. Until now, Mike Lempres has been the leading the company's legal efforts and from now Brooks will be taking over as a seasoned law expert.
The firm aims to push effort in the direction to increase their legal affairs as there have been evolving regulatory ambience from the regulatory officials.
The firm has given assigned new mission for Lempers, as Brooks takes over. He will now focus on scaling the crypto exchange’s government affairs program.
This will include Coinbase as a founding member of the Blockchain Association, a non-profit trade association based in Washington DC which will serve as the unified voice of the blockchain ecosystem. The program also includes managing the Coinbase Political Action Committee.
Brian Armstrong, the Co-founder and CEO of Coinbase said that the appointment of Brooks was coming at a critical time in the regulatory crypto environment.
A statement from Armstrong said, “In recent years, the industry expanded faster than we could have imagined with an explosion in customer demand and entrepreneurial activity pushing the capabilities of the ecosystem forward.
“As this trend continues, it is more important than ever that we contribute to a public policy and regulatory environment that fosters innovation while protecting investors.”
Brooks has held a number of legal roles at reputed firms. In his previous profession, Brooks served as an Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of Fannie Mae, the largest financial institution in the United States. He has also acted as a senior advisor to the Chief Executive Officer of Fannie Mae and its Board of Directors. Brooks has held many responsible positions at presumed firms having the legal offices.