Uniswap Labs is strengthening its ranks. The company hired Coinbase's former chief legal officer. Katherine Minarik will take over as general counsel. The cryptocurrency community knows perfectly well what these changes mean. A court battle with the US Securities and Exchange Commission is fast approaching.
Uniswap Labs begins cooperation with Katherine Minarik
The new general counsel took up her new position at Uniswap Labs on Monday, which she announced in a post on the X platform. Interestingly, her hiring came just two months after the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) signaled the possibility of legal action against Uniswap . The American regulator sent the company the so-called Wells Notice, i.e. a document preceding a lawsuit. The SEC wants Uniswap booked for allegedly violating federal securities laws.
Minarik, the new general counsel of Uniswap Labs, joins the company after a four-year period at Coinbase, where she served as vice president for legal affairs and deputy general counsel. Minarik added in a post on X that:
It's impossible to spend time in the cryptocurrency world and not be inspired by DeFi's potential to change the world. I'm honored to take on this new role at Uniswap Labs as we continue to fight for economic inclusion and the future of finance for all of us.
The changes will include the current legal counsel, Marvin Ammori. He announced that he plans to move to a part-time role at the startup.
Uniswap Labs is getting ready for a court battle with the SEC?
There is no denying that Minarik will face a lot of work and challenges in the coming months. In April, the SEC issued a notice signaling possible enforcement action against the startup. Although from the so-called Well Notice is a long way to a full-fledged lawsuit, so it is known that the SEC intends to look at the cryptocurrency industry with even greater intensity. Of course, we are talking about SEC lawsuits that have already affected companies such as Coinbase and Ripple Labs. So it looks like Uniswap Labs is getting ready for a long-term court battle with the SEC.
