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The SEC chair is set to leave office in six days, the same day Donald Trump is scheduled to be inaugurated as president in Washington, DC.
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US Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler, scheduled to leave the regulatory body in six days, said the outcome of the 2024 presidential election didn’t come down to money from crypto interest groups.
In a Jan. 14 interview with CNBC‘s Andrew Ross Sorkin on Squawk Box, Gensler said he thought it was unlikely that crypto-focused voters and money from digital asset interest groups swung the US election for President-elect Donald Trump.
The SEC chair, who will be leaving office the same day of Trump’s inauguration, pivoted in the interview to previous talking points about investor protection during his time leading the commission.
“I think this election, though as you point out, there was money raised from the crypto field, I don’t think that’s what this election was about,” said Gensler. “This field, the crypto field, a highly speculative field, has not been compliant with various laws, whether it’s any money laundering laws, sanctions laws, or in our case, securities laws.”
Under Gensler, the SEC filed several enforcement actions against US-based crypto firms, including Coinbase, Ripple Labs, and Binance. Many in the industry have continued to criticize the regulator for not offering “clear rules of the road” digital asset firms can use to operate while avoiding potential violations of US securities laws.
In a 60 Minutes interview with Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse aired in December, the crypto executive said it was unlikely political action committee (PAC) Fairshake would exist if Gensler hadn’t been in charge of the SEC.
Fairshake spent millions of dollars on media buys to support those who were considered “pro-crypto” candidates in US congressional races, though Federal Election Commission records showed no expenditures by the PAC for Trump’s campaign.
Trump announced in December that he intended to nominate former SEC commissioner Paul Atkins to replace Gensler as SEC chair. At the time of publication, members of the US Senate had not scheduled a hearing to consider the nomination.
Related: XRP price eyes 60% gain ahead of Gary Gensler’s SEC exit
Coinbase’s legal team continues to challenge court decisions favoring SEC policies on crypto. In addition to fighting the SEC enforcement action filed in 2023 — currently going to appellate court — the exchange has filed Freedom of Information Act requests to gather evidence the US government allegedly orchestrated a campaign to debank crypto firms, and it has an ongoing lawsuit over a request to have the regulator establish rules for the industry.
In Ripple’s case with the SEC, a court found the firm liable for $125 million in August, but both parties have filed appeals. Others like Robinhood and Mango Markets announced settlements with the US regulator over allegations of offering unregistered securities.
Magazine: Trump’s Bitcoin policy lashed in China, deepfake scammers busted: Asia Express
This article first appeared at Cointelegraph.com News
