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Cornerstone Research says the US Securities and Exchange Commission launched 33 crypto-related lawsuits last year, down from 47 in 2023.
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The US Securities and Exchange Commission’s crypto-related enforcement actions dropped by 30% in the last year under former Chair Gary Gensler, a report has found.
The agency launched just 33 crypto-related actions in its last year under Gensler, compared to 47 actions the year prior in what was its peak enforcement year, Cornerstone Research said in a Jan. 23 report.
The SEC charged a total of 90 defendants or respondents in crypto enforcement actions last year, which comprised 57 individuals and 33 firms.
There was also a marked drop in administrative proceedings, which fell by more than 50%. Monetary penalties imposed against crypto industry participants reached a record high of almost $5 billion in 2024, carried by the SEC’s $4.5 billion settlement with Terraform Labs.
Gensler, who was appointed by Joe Biden in 2021, stepped down as SEC chair on Jan. 20 with Donald Trump entering the White House.
Cornerstone said over half of the SEC’s enforcement actions in 2024 were in September and October, with only four actions initiated after the US elections in November.
The agency’s most frequent allegation in its crypto litigation was fraud, which it invoked in 73% of cases. Accusations of unregistered securities offerings were next at 58%. The regulator also increased charges that focused on market manipulation and failures to register as broker-dealers.
Gensler’s SEC initiated almost 80% more crypto-related enforcement actions than when it was chaired by Jay Clayton from 2017 to 2020.
Comparison of SEC administrations. Source: Cornerstone Research
Of the 207 crypto enforcement actions brought by the SEC since 2013, 47% have been related to initial coin offerings and non-fungible tokens.
Related: Gensler’s SEC made US ‘nearly untenable’ for crypto firms, say observers
The SEC, under Trump’s pick to lead the regulator, acting chair Mark Uyeda, has already made a shift in priorities in its first few days.
On Jan. 23, the SEC canceled Staff Accounting Bulletin 121, a controversial rule that asked banks and finance firms holding crypto to record them as liabilities on their balance sheets.
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This article first appeared at Cointelegraph.com News
