TL;DR Breakdown
- Former CFTC is now the new chairman of the US SEC.
- Gary Gensler is pro-blockchain.
The next person to chair the US SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) is someone with a soft spot for the crypto market, as apparent from the latest developments regarding the incoming Biden administration. On Monday (January 18, 2021), President-elect Joe Biden picked Gary Gensler as the new person to lead the SEC during his tenure. Biden is expected to take office in the coming days.
Gary will take over from Elad Roisman, who became SEC’s chairman in acting capacity after replacing the former chairman, Jay Clayton. Jay’s tenure ended on 23rd December, 2020.
Gensler is a friend of crypto
Besides being vastly experienced in Wall Street dynamics, Gary is also a former chairman of the CFTC (Commodity Futures Trading Commission). In that capacity, he has studied the crypto market extensively. At the MIT, Gary also taught blockchain-related courses. That’s why Gary’s appointment as SEC chairman is a big deal for the expanding crypto community.
Gary’s appointment was welcomed by the industry, attracting the attention of some of the popular and influential people in the market. Ripple’s CEO, Brad Garlinghouse, tweeted to congratulate the incoming SEC chairman. Despite Ripple being embroiled in a court battle with SEC, Brad said that the company is ready to work with Gary and the Biden administration to foster blockchain and crypto-based technologies.
What it means for the market
The crypto industry doesn’t have a lot of friends in high places, and lack of sufficient regulatory frameworks has added to this pressure. A pro-blockchain figure being in a position to change things is a sign of relief after years of waiting in limbo. Some of the big issues to be solved would be the approval of effective ETFs and an express ruling on whether controversial cryptos like XRP should be classified as securities or digital assets.
With good regulatory policies, digital coins like Bitcoin could go totally mainstream and attract even more support from the newly-confident investors. This would ultimately fuel a bull run and fortify the value of cryptocurrencies as globally acceptable digital currencies.
