Coinbase CEO wants next SEC chair to apologize for ‘damage’ done

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong believes that the next chair of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) should apologize to Americans for the damage the agency has done to the crypto space. 

On Oct. 29, Armstrong published a compilation of conflicting statements made by the SEC throughout the years. These issues include the SEC’s inconsistent stance on whether digital assets like Bitcoin (BTC) are securities, as well as whether the agency can regulate crypto exchanges and if existing laws are clear.

According to Armstrong, the next SEC chair should apologize to the American people and withdraw all “frivolous” legal cases. He believes that while this may not undo the damage done, it would begin to restore trust in the government institution.

Coinbase CEO endorses Republican Senate candidates

As the US election looms, Armstrong has endorsed pro-crypto Senate candidates, including former Bridgewater Associates CEO David McCormick and the pro-XRP (XRP) lawyer John Deaton. 

On Oct. 20, Armstrong wrote on X that McCormick is “the better candidate on crypto” for people who live in Pennsylvania. In another X post, he also endorsed Deaton, who is seeking to unseat the US Democratic Party Senator Elizabeth Warren. 

Armstrong said that crypto holders in Massachusetts should realize that Warren is “the one who got SEC Chair Gary Gensler his job.” He alleged that Warren encouraged Gensler to unlawfully try and “kill the crypto industry in America.”

While Armstrong has endorsed Senate candidates, he has not yet backed a presidential candidate.

Related: Trump vows to make US ‘world capital of crypto,’ taps Musk for new task force

What a Trump win could mean for the SEC

Many believe that if former President Donald Trump wins the upcoming election, he will appoint a more crypto-friendly chair of the SEC.

On July 27, Trump vowed to fire Gensler on day one if he gets reelected. Trump also said he would appoint a chair who believes that America should “build the future, not block the future.” 

On Oct. 7, a former SEC official reportedly said that Robinhood chief legal officer Dan Gallagher would be a “natural choice” as the chair of the securities regulator under the Trump administration. Gallagher became the chief legal officer at Robinhood in 2020 and served as an SEC commissioner from 2011 to 2015. 

Former officials also believe that Trump might consider former SEC General Counsel Robert Stebbins, SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, or Chris Giancarlo, who is a commissioner and former chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

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