Gary Gensler, the Chair of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), has criticized participants in the crypto industry for evading registration requirements with the regulator. In a speech given at Columbia Law School, Gensler emphasized the importance of mandatory disclosure for market participants, echoing the words of Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis who famously said, “Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants.”
Gensler pointed out that there are still players in the crypto securities markets who are seeking to avoid these registration requirements, which means they are not obligated to provide mandatory disclosure. He argued that the crypto markets could benefit from more transparency and regulation.
These remarks from Gensler come at a time when the SEC is actively pursuing enforcement actions against major crypto firms such as Kraken, Binance, Ripple, and Coinbase. Many crypto companies and advocacy groups have urged the SEC to establish clear regulatory guidelines in order to foster innovation within the United States.
In addition to this, it has been reported that the SEC has issued subpoenas as part of an ongoing campaign to classify Ether (ETH) as a security under the regulator’s purview. Over the past couple of years, the SEC has made progress in approving crypto-related exchange-traded products for U.S. exchanges, including investment vehicles tied to ETH and Bitcoin (BTC) futures, as well as the first spot BTC exchange-traded funds in January.
The question now arises as to whether SEC Chair Gary Gensler has the final say when it comes to crypto regulation. His remarks and actions indicate that he is taking a proactive approach to overseeing the crypto industry and ensuring that it operates within the boundaries of existing securities laws.