Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. (SEC), Gary Gensler did not hesitate to state publicly that he is interested in crypto, yet investor protection is a priority.
The SEC said it was working to formulate a protection plan for investors in the coming days. Gary Gensler in an interview with Bloomberg revealed that although he is interested in crypto but this does not mean that crypto does not need to be regulated, especially in terms of investor protection.
Since Gensler became chairman of the SEC, he has shown a softer approach to crypto, however in testimony and early actions since acting chairman of the SEC show he maintains a similar attitude to his predecessor.
Gensler also stressed that there is an urgent need to bring the crypto market under the jurisdiction of the SEC. He says crypto assets like Bitcoin act as a currency but are considered a commodity. But cryptocurrency assets numbering in the thousands must be ‘secure’ and must comply with SEC rules.
According to Gensler, with the advent of regulation in the crypto market, it will drive an increase in retail and institutional investors. He gave the example of the automobile industry which stated the industry became mainstream only after the government set driving rules and made it safer for everyone.
Despite all of this, Gensler did not provide details on the SEC’s plans on Bitcoin ETF regulation. Gensler also at the same time revealed that they plan to bring in new rules that require BTC mining companies to issue reports related to environmental risks.
The crypto market has shown a doubling in the first 6 months of 2021, rising to more than 220 million users worldwide.
