Ripple CEO says SEC Chair Gensler behaves like an ‘autocrat’

Ripple (XRP) CEO Brad Garlinghouse said the U.S. Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler behaves like an “autocrat,” urging elected officials to take note of the regulator.

Garlinghouse commented on a news report where Gensler said there was no additional need for crypto legislation as existing rules cover the sector.

The SEC chair made this statement after appearing before the House Appropriations Committee. Gensler told reporters that the SEC can define security and that existing securities law “cover most of the activity that’s happening in the crypto markets.”

In his view, any legislation by congress should not “undermine inadvertently through definitions of what’s in or out, or in essence allow for conflicts that we don’t allow.”

Garlinghouse slams SEC

Garlinghouse believes these Gensler’s statements send the wrong message and amount to behaving like an autocrat. He said:

“For the Chair of the SEC to assert that he dictates what is a security – and not the legislation from which his agency derives its power – is beyond comprehension. It’s time for elected officials in the US to take notice.”

The CEO added that there was a need for clarity because “ambiguity masquerades as power.”

Garlinghouse’s views reiterate earlier comments by crypto stakeholders who have expressed concerns about the SEC approach to crypto.

Recently, the commission has doubled its regulatory effort against the crypto industry. The Commission recently filed a lawsuit against crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun and his companies. The financial regulator also charged crypto platform Beaxy for failing to register as a national securities exchange.

Meanwhile, the legal battle between SEC and  Ripple is potentially nearing its end — with several crypto attorneys predicting a win for the crypto firm. Popular TV personality and host of Mad Money, Jim Cramer, also said the regulator might lose the case.