In a blog post published on Dec. 18, San Francisco-based exchange Coinbase revealed that it had filed documents with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to go public.

• Coinbase submitted a draft registration statement on Form S-1 with the SEC; once approved, the application will become effective “after the SEC completes its review process, subject to market and other conditions”
• Reuters reported in Jul. 2020 that the company would be going public, though it is as of yet unknown whether it will be an IPO or direct listing
• Valued at $8 billion in 2018, Coinbase is taking steps to avoid drawing the ire of financial authorities; the filing will still have to pass the scrutiny of the SEC, which has intensified its review of the cryptocurrency market with several lawsuits
• The filing completes an eventful year for Coinbase, which has doubled down on compliance and faced controversy over allegations of racism