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SEC under Trump will “vigorously pursue” cryptocurrency regulation – says former regulator
Former Deputy Director of the SEC Enforcement Division Jennifer Lee said May 2 That Donald Trump’s a possible re-election likely won’t change the SEC’s stance on cryptocurrencies.
Lee told CNBC that the SEC “vigorously prosecuted cryptocurrency-related cases” during Trump’s first presidential term and that this brought “light and regulation” to the burgeoning industry.
He predicted that the SEC will continue to “define its space and deal with cryptocurrencies” if Trump serves a second presidential term.
The SEC is more consistent about whether specific cryptocurrencies fall within the agency’s purview, but the extent of its jurisdiction over the sector remains an open question, Lee said.
Lee has not commented on the SEC’s precise actions during Trump’s first term. However, then-SEC Chairman Jay Clayton brought some cryptocurrency sales under the purview of the SEC around 2018, including during a Senate hearing in which he claimed that all the ICOs he had seen were securities.
Clayton also believed that some cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, were not titles at the moment.
Others expect pro-crypto policies
Another former SEC member, former head of the SEC’s Office of Internet Enforcement John Reed Stark, argued that the SEC under Trump may not be tough on cryptocurrencies.
Stark said September that a Republican-appointed SEC chair would likely “considerably slow” the SEC’s cryptocurrency enforcement efforts. He also suggested that Trump might change his anti-crypto stance to satisfy single-issue crypto voters.
Stark noted that Trump holds significant cryptocurrency holdings, a claim supported by financial documents linked to Trump’s NFT initiatives.
Others have suggested a similarly light touch. In January, the House majority whips Tom Emmer She said a second Trump administration could be “friendlier” towards cryptocurrencies.
Trump himself in March suggested a measured approach to cryptocurrency regulation.
Regardless of the political change, a change in the presidential administration could impact the leadership of the SEC. SEC chairmen typically resign during changes in administration. Therefore, current SEC Chairman Gary Gensler, whose term runs until June 2026, could resign in the event of Trump’s victory.
The likely outcome of the US presidential election is unknown. FiveThirtyEight projects that Trump and Biden have the same chance of winning, with Trump at 41.7% and Biden at 40.7%.