Former US Judge to Step Down as Coinbase’s Legal Chief

Paul Grewal, who has been Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer for the last six years, will step down from his role later this month. He, however, will remain associated with the crypto exchange as an advisor.

“I will be a Coinbase ally,” Grewal wrote in a LinkedIn post.

He, however, did not reveal his next move. Whether it will be within crypto or outside also remains unclear.

It is also unclear who will replace him in the top legal role at the publicly listed crypto exchange.

Judiciary, Facebook and then Crypto

Grewal joined Coinbase in September 2020. Another high-profile role he held during his 26-year career was as Facebook’s Deputy General Counsel, a position he left to join the crypto exchange.

Another highlight of his career was his tenure as a US Magistrate Judge in California for almost six years. He previously confirmed that he first heard about crypto when he was a judge.

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Grewal’s exit comes at a time when Coinbase is expanding aggressively globally. It recently received UK authorisation to provide investment services, allowing the cryptocurrency exchange to expand beyond digital assets and offer traditional financial products in the country.

The exchange is also seeking approval from the US regulator to offer tokenised equities. Tokenised equities are digital tokens that represent shares in a company. Investors would not hold the stocks directly but would own tokens linked to them.