Acting SEC Chair Uyeda Announces Formation of Crypto Task Force

Shortly after Donald Trump appointed Mark T. Uyeda as acting chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Uyeda launched a crypto task force dedicated to developing a comprehensive and clear regulatory framework for crypto assets. Commissioner Hester Peirce will lead the task force.
Richard Gabbert, senior adviser to the acting chairman, and Taylor Asher, senior policy adviser to the acting chairman, will serve as the task force’s chief of staff and chief policy adviser, respectively.
Trump appointed Uyeda, among other federal appointments, shortly after being sworn in for his second term as president, according to a Jan. 20 memo by the White House. Uyeda’s appointment as acting chair followed Gary Gensler’s departure.
Uyeda will likely serve as acting chair until Trump’s nominee for Gensler’s successor, digital asset industry lobbyist Paul Atkins, completes his Senate confirmation process.
Drawing from staff across the agency, the task force is intended to collaborate with Commission staff and the public to set the SEC on a sensible regulatory path that respects the bounds of the law. To date, the SEC has relied primarily on enforcement actions to regulate crypto retroactively and reactively, often adopting novel and untested legal interpretations along the way.
Under Gensler, according to previous reporting by The DI Wire, the SEC continued work begun by Jay Clayton, former chair, to protect investors in the crypto markets. The agency brought actions against crypto intermediaries for fraud, wash trading, registration violations, and other misconduct.
In the last full fiscal year, according to the SEC’s Office of the Inspector General, 18% of the SEC’s tips, complaints, and referrals were crypto-related, despite the crypto markets comprising less than 1% of the U.S. capital markets. The majority of courts agreed with the SEC’s actions to protect investors and rejected arguments that the SEC cannot enforce the law when securities are being offered.
Now, according to the SEC, the task force’s focus will be to help the Commission draw clear regulatory lines, provide realistic paths to registration, craft sensible disclosure frameworks, and deploy enforcement resources judiciously.
The SEC said the task force will operate within the statutory framework provided by Congress and will coordinate the provision of technical assistance to Congress as it makes changes to that framework. It will coordinate with federal departments and agencies, including the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and state and international counterparts.
“I look forward to the efforts of Commissioner Peirce to lead regulatory policy on crypto, which involves multiple SEC divisions and offices,” said Uyeda.
“This undertaking will take time, patience, and much hard work. It will succeed only if the Task Force has input from a wide range of investors, industry participants, academics, and other interested parties. We look forward to working hand-in-hand with the public to foster a regulatory environment that protects investors, facilitates capital formation, fosters market integrity, and supports innovation,” stated Commissioner Peirce.
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