TLDR
- SEC agrees to drop lawsuit against Consensys over MetaMask wallet
- No fines or conditions imposed as part of the dismissal
- This is one of several enforcement actions recently dropped against crypto firms
- The regulatory shift follows leadership changes at SEC and Trump administration policies
- Consensys had previously sued the SEC over Ethereum regulation attempts
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has agreed to drop its lawsuit against Consensys, the company behind the popular crypto wallet MetaMask. This move is part of a series of dropped enforcement actions against crypto firms, pointing to a change in the SEC’s approach to regulating the cryptocurrency industry.
The SEC sued Consensys in June 2024. The agency claimed that the company made over $250 million in fees by offering staking services and digital asset swaps through MetaMask. These activities, according to the SEC, violated securities laws.
I'm pleased to announce that Consensys and the SEC have agreed in principle that the securities enforcement case concerning MetaMask should be dismissed. Subject to the approval of the Commission, the SEC will file a stipulation with the court that effectively closes the case.…
— Joseph Lubin (@ethereumJoseph) February 27, 2025
Ethereum co-founder and Consensys founder Joseph Lubin announced the news on February 27, 2025. He stated that the SEC has agreed to file a motion to end the case. The dismissal is still subject to final approval from the commission.
“Now we can get 100% back to building,” Lubin said. “2025 is going to be the best year yet for Ethereum and Consensys. The paradigm shift to a much more decentralized world is accelerating.”
The lawsuit will be dismissed with prejudice. This means that the SEC cannot refile a lawsuit against Consensys with the same claims, according to Matt Corva, general counsel at Consensys.
Consensys attorney Bill Hughes told Cointelegraph that the agreement was straightforward. The SEC will not impose any fines or conditions on Consensys as part of the lawsuit dismissal.
Hughes pointed to changes in the conversations after the election. “There was definitely a tenor change in the conversations post-election,” he said, referring to talks between Consensys and the SEC.
The attorney attributed the SEC’s new direction to leadership changes and the pro-crypto policies of the Trump administration. Acting Chairman Mark Uyeda took office in January 2025 and has promoted a “pro-innovation” stance.
Uyeda established a Crypto Task Force led by Commissioner Hester Peirce. This marks a shift from former Chair Gary Gensler’s more aggressive enforcement approach.
Change from the SEC
The SEC’s decision on Consensys follows similar actions regarding other crypto companies. The agency has recently dropped enforcement actions against Uniswap, Robinhood Crypto, Gemini, and Coinbase.
Last week, crypto exchange Coinbase announced that regulators agreed to drop a two-year-old lawsuit. That case had sought to regulate the company as a stock exchange.
Before the SEC’s lawsuit against Consensys, the company had taken its own legal action against the regulator. Consensys filed a lawsuit in April 2024 challenging the SEC’s plans to regulate Ether as a security.
In that lawsuit, Consensys lawyers argued that the SEC was trying “to seize control over the future of cryptocurrency.” They claimed that classifying Ether as a security would criminalize anyone sending ETH over the network.
The company pointed to comments made by former SEC Chair Gary Genser in 2018. These statements, according to Consensys, clearly showed that the SEC did not consider ETH a security at that time.
In June 2024, the SEC dropped its Ethereum investigation. Lubin credited this to Consensys’ lawsuit against the SEC, which would have highlighted Gensler’s 2018 comments.
The Texas court dismissed Consensys’ lawsuit on procedural grounds in September 2024. However, Consensys maintains that ethereum (ETH) is a commodity, not a security.
Industry observers see the SEC’s decision on Consensys as part of a broader regulatory softening under the Trump administration. The administration has nominated Paul Atkins for permanent SEC leadership.
While Lubin expressed gratitude for the decision, the outcome still awaits formal commissioner approval. An SEC spokesperson declined to comment on the matter when asked by reporters.
