The SEC Chair, Gary Gensler had initially made a statement in the US Congress saying, “This asset class is rife with fraud, scams, and abuse in certain applications. We need additional congressional authorities to prevent transactions, products, and platforms from falling between regulatory cracks.“
The recent investigations by the US Securities and Exchange Commission over digital assets companies have caused some experts to question the commissions' motive and attention towards the crypto sector.
Earlier this month, the SEC Chair, Gary Gensler, said to the US Congress,
“This asset class is rife with fraud, scams, and abuse in certain applications. We need additional congressional authorities to prevent transactions, products, and platforms from falling between regulatory cracks.“
John Deaton, the founder of CryptoLaw and a lawyer for XRP holders in the SEC vs. Ripple court case, has written an op-ed criticizing the regulator's overreach. He mentioned that as the crypto industry evolves, many new investors are entering the space. However, he suggested that the drop in SPACs indicates that the SEC chair has a lot of sectors to mess with.
According to the report, Deaton stated that Gensler has even referred to the cryptocurrency market as the "Wild West" of investing. Gensler believes that these assets support illegal activities. Meanwhile, fiat is the number one tool for most money laundering and fraudulent operations.
The XRP lawyer continued by saying that the SEC chair seems to thrive in power grabbing. The Commission chief has provided little to no feedback to the public over their rulemaking. However, it has increased the environmental (ESG) data disclosure requirements.
Deaton further added that this move would allow the SEC to advance its social agenda and secure a more prominent role in the Biden administration.
He then speculated that the SEC Chair's fight against cryptocurrency could be his most dangerous and ambitious affront to constitutional norms. He emphasized that security involves an actual contract of relations between seller and buyer in every case since the Howey test was discovered.
An earlier report by Coingape showed that the XRP lawyer suggests that the SEC commissioner might be avoiding an internal inquiry over its past activities. Meanwhile, the SEC chair and other officials have declined to comment.
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