SEC chair speaks on using ‘all means available’ to bar crypto from mainstream 

Gary Gensler, the United States Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) chair, has responded to allegations of making it more complex and challenging for the crypto space to enter the mainstream. 

According to Gensler, the regulator’s initiatives are aimed at protecting investors while leveraging available tools to ensure that market participants comply with regulations, including talking directly to them, he said during an interview with CNBC’s Squawk Box show on February 10. 

Gensler, who has previously come under fire for the alleged stifling of the crypto sector, acknowledged that only a few tokens have registered intermediaries but expressed concern about the conflicts in their business models.

“We’re using all available tools. We’re talking directly to market participants. We take the meetings, and we say, this is how you comply. <…> The casinos that people are investing in and need to properly comply and disentangle these bundled products. The business model that they’ve set up has is rife with conflicts.<…> We’re here to try to protect the investing public,” he said. 

Remaining technology neutral in regulations

The SEC chairman emphasized the importance of technology-neutral regulations, noting that’s the agency’s goal. At the same time, he pointed out that the field of cryptocurrencies needs ‘time-tested rules and laws’ to protect investors.

“If this field has any chance of survival and success, it’s time-tested rules and laws to protect the investing public. Public disclosure, full, fair, and truthful disclosure, addresses conflicts and disaggregate these bundled businesses and doesn’t have your hand in the customer’s pocket using their funds, right, or your own,” Gensler added. 

Gensler’s latest sentiment comes after the SEC launched a new onslaught on the crypto space targeting the staking sector. In particular, SEC reached an agreement with crypto exchange Kraken resulting in the termination of its staking operations. 

Commenting on the matter, Gensler stated that Kraken was not complying with the laws, and the settlement was part of SEC’s ‘basic bargain.’ He noted that the trading platform had not implemented full, fair, and truthful disclosure measures.