Ron Hammond Shares His Views on the Future of the SEC Under Gary Gensler

Ron Hammond, director of government relations at the Blockchain Association, recently shared his views on the future of the Securities and Exchange Commission

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been ramping up its enforcement actions against cryptocurrency companies in recent months, and some believe that this could be a sign that SEC Chairman Gary Gensler is preparing to take more aggressive action before leaving office.

In an interview with Thinking Crypto, Ron Hammond, director of government relations at the Blockchain Association, said that Gensler could face political pressure to file more lawsuits or take other aggressive actions before stepping down.

“I think it's entirely plausible that we could see some last-minute Gensler moves,” said Hammond. “And I think that, you know, given the nature of his tenure and how controversial it's been, I wouldn't be surprised if we saw some, you know, kind of last-minute flurries of activity from the SEC.”

Some of the SEC's recent actions have raised questions about whether they are being used to influence policy discussions. For example, the SEC issued a Wells notice to Coinbase just hours before the company was set to testify before a House committee on the crypto market structure.

“The timing of that certainly suggests that the SEC is trying to use its enforcement authority to kind of influence the conversation that's happening on Capitol Hill,” said Hammond.

Gensler has been under increasing pressure from both the cryptocurrency industry and members of Congress over his handling of crypto regulation. Some have accused him of being too slow to approve a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) and overly aggressive in his pursuit of crypto companies.

If Gensler does resign soon, it could have a significant impact on the SEC's approach to cryptocurrency regulation. His successor would likely have a different perspective on crypto, and this could lead to changes in the way that the SEC regulates the industry.

However, Hammond warned that even if Gensler leaves, the crypto industry should not expect a smooth ride. He said that the Biden administration has shown little interest in engaging with the crypto community, and it is unclear whether new leadership at the SEC will be any more crypto-friendly.

“I think the crypto industry has largely been disappointed by the Biden administration,” said Hammond. “They came into office promising a whole-of-government approach to crypto regulation, and what we've seen instead is the administration largely cede the field to the SEC, which has taken a very aggressive approach towards the crypto industry.”

The above is the detailed content of Ron Hammond Shares His Views on the Future of the SEC Under Gary Gensler. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!