BiT Global has filed a $1 billion lawsuit against Coinbase, accusing the exchange of unjustly removing Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) from its platform in favor of promoting its own competing product, cbBTC.
The suspension of WBTC across all Coinbase platforms was announced just days before the lawsuit was filed. WBTC is an ERC-20 token launched on the Ethereum blockchain in 2018, and is backed 1:1 by Bitcoin. This allows users to utilize Bitcoin liquidity on other blockchain ecosystems, such as Ethereum.
The lawsuit, which was initiated on Friday, claims that Coinbase’s decision to delist WBTC was not based on listing standards as stated, but rather because the exchange wanted to gain control over the market.
BiT Global argues that this violates antitrust laws and is seeking damages for the significant financial losses incurred as a result. In November, Coinbase announced that it would suspend trading for WBTC on its platform starting December 19, citing a thorough evaluation process.
However, WBTC had been trading on the exchange for several years before this announcement. The WBTC team responded with strong criticism of Coinbase’s sudden decision.
