SEC Gensler’s crypto crackdown under scrutiny as he testifies before Congress

US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler volition attest doubly this week earlier Congress.

Gensler volition look earlier the House Financial Services Committee connected Sept. 24 and the Senate Banking Committee connected Sept. 25.

These hearings hap amid ongoing tensions betwixt the SEC and the crypto industry. Data from Paradigm reveals that the SEC has taken 171 enforcement actions against the crypto space, with a marked summation since Gensler’s confirmation successful April 2021.

Brendan Malone, Paradigm’s Policy Manager, noted:

“Since Chair Gensler took bureau connected April 17, 2021, the SEC has progressively gone to tribunal to found its argumentation positions—confirming what the manufacture has agelong known regarding regularisation by enforcement.”

No notation of crypto successful associated testimony

On Sept. 23, Gensler announced that helium and 4 different commissioners—Caroline A. Crenshaw, Hester Peirce, James Lizarraga, and Mark Uyeda—would attest earlier the House Financial Services Committee successful a proceeding titled “Oversight of the Securities and Exchange Commission.”

The associated testimony emphasized the SEC’s relation successful safeguarding the $100 trillion US superior markets and maintaining dominance implicit the US dollar. It besides highlighted the SEC’s $2.15 cardinal fund and noted that its enforcement part took 784 actions successful FY 2023, resulting successful $4.9 cardinal successful penalties and disgorgement.

The commissioners wrote regarding enforcement:

“[The] monetary remedies [are] designed to region wrongdoer’s ill-gotten gains and deter aboriginal violations. the Commission’s enforcement actions support investors by obtaining remedial injunctions successful territory tribunal and, similarly, remedial suspensions and bars successful administrative proceedings.”

Although the commissioners did not straight code the crypto industry, a proceeding memo reviewed by CryptoSlate indicated that crypto would beryllium a taxable of treatment astatine the event.

The memo pointed retired that nether Gensler’s leadership, the SEC prioritized the integer plus abstraction and continued pushing for broader authorization implicit the ecosystem portion pursuing an assertive enforcement agenda.

However, the memo noted that the SEC has not clearly defined digital assets arsenic securities. This deficiency of clarity has near the integer plus abstraction successful regulatory uncertainty, threatening its aboriginal successful the US.

The station SEC Gensler’s crypto crackdown nether scrutiny arsenic helium testifies earlier Congress appeared archetypal connected CryptoSlate.