The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has waged a particularly bitter battle over the past year against the crypto ecosystem. But is the tide turning? There are several signs of discomfort on the part of the US financial watchdog
The SEC is reportedly facing an exodus of its lawyers
According to Fox News reporter Charles Gasparino, several top SEC lawyers are currently fleeing the ranks of the regulatory agency. This is particularly the case for the unit dedicated to cryptocurrencies:
SCOOP: @SECGov bracing for major exodus among senior enforcement lawyers in its crypto assets and cyber unit, according to officials at major law firms who have seen several of the resumes. @FoxBusiness is withholding names to protect privacy; the moves suggest that the bleed of…
– Charles Gasparino (@CGasparino) February 9, 2024
“The move suggests a continuing exodus of executives who operated under Gary Gensler’s controversial leadership. “
Gary Gensler has indeed attracted criticism beyond the crypto community, for the lack of regulatory clarity that applies to the sector, and for his hard-line stances. The recent approval of Bitcoin spot ETFs has also been seen as a major milestone in the battle to benefit the crypto ecosystem.
Gary Gensler must justify false tweet published by SEC account
The SEC also has some explaining to do. Shortly before the Bitcoin ETFs were approved, the SEC’s X account was hacked. It had tweeted a false approval announcement. The message was quickly deleted, but not before it had had an effect. The price of Bitcoin (BTC) immediately jumped
The @SECGov twitter account was compromised, and an unauthorized tweet was posted. The SEC has not approved the listing and trading of spot bitcoin exchange-traded products.
– Gary Gensler (@GaryGensler) January 9, 2024
We suspected Gary Gensler would have to answer for this blunder, which came at a critical time. Four members of the House of Representatives had asked the SEC director to explain what had happened. He has just complied, and has published a letter in response, explaining the events.
Gary Gensler explains in particular that the SEC has contacted several agencies to get to the bottom of the matter, and to determine who is behind this attack:
“The SEC teams themselves contacted […] the appropriate law enforcement agencies, including the SEC’s Office of General Inspection, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), as well as the Department of Homeland Security. “
It’s not yet clear whether the case will go any further. All this does, however, show a certain unease on the part of the SEC, which has committed a great deal of resources and energy to its crusade against cryptocurrencies. Is Gary Gensler on the outs? In any case, the American elections, scheduled for this year, could reshuffle the cards.
