Paul Grewal, Chief Legal Officer of Coinbase, has sharply criticized the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) for its handling of a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. In a post on X, Grewal accused the FDIC of using FOIA Exemption 8 to obscure information about alleged attempts to suppress blockchain technology and Bitcoin transactions.
Coinbase CLO Fumes At FDIC
Grewal wrote, “As terrible as O2.0 itself was, FDIC’s abuse of FOIA Exemption 8 to cover it up has arguably been even worse. If we want government ability, we need government transparency.”
The controversy centers on redactions in the FDIC’s response to Coinbase’s FOIA request. Grewal claimed the FDIC misrepresented the purpose of its redactions. He wrote, “FDIC lied. I don’t say that lightly. But the redactions clearly weren’t about protecting confidential supervisory information. They were about covering up evidence that they tried to kill BTC transactions, the development of blockchain tech, and even a bank for stablecoin reserves.”
As terrible as O2.0 itself was, @FDICgov‘s abuse of FOIA Exemption 8 to cover it up has arguable been even worse. If we want government ability, we need government transparency. As explained below, FDIC’s redactions of its response to our FOIA request pursuant to… pic.twitter.com/W7tbXTPtsi
— paulgrewal.eth (@iampaulgrewal) January 6, 2025
A federal court reviewing the redactions also expressed concern. The Coinbase CLO noted the court’s observations, stating it was “concerned with what appears to be FDIC’s lack of good-faith effort in making nuanced redactions.” Moreover, he spotlighted how the court onished the FDIC, saying it “cannot simply blanket redact everything that is not an article or preposition.”
Grewal further challenged the FDIC’s justification for the redactions. “To justify the redactions under Exemption 8, FDIC said that by disclosing the pause letters they’d inflict ‘reasonably foreseeable’ harm on the targets by disclosing their specific operations, business and marketing plans. We now can see there was zero foreseeable harm from these redactions.”
“This arrogance on display doesn’t just insult the public,” Grewal concluded in his fiery post. He added, “It insults the Courts and Congress and undermines their independent oversight authority.”
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