SEC chair might lose his job over Crypto abuse

The crypto giant Coinbase and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have a crusade going on. It started with a Wells notice sent to Coinbase on March 22, 2023. Since then, fights on Twitter and otherwise too have been going on. So much so that the chair of the SEC, Gary Gensler is set to appear in front of Congress to defend his actions against the crypto industry. 

 Many people have come out to support both the SEC and the crypto industry. Recently, United States Representative Warren Davidson declared he would introduce legislation to fire the SEC boss. In a tweet to Coinbase’s legal head, Paul Grewal, on April 15, the crypto-friendly congressman stated his desire to have Gensler removed from his position. This is following the SEC’s newest declaration about reviewing the proposed definitions of an “exchange.”

At an open meeting with SEC commissioners and staff on April 14, Gensler stated that the proposed rule revisions might help investors and markets by subjecting select brokers to more regulatory scrutiny and “modernising” standards that define an exchange. The proposal redefines an “exchange” as a mechanism that “bring[s] together buyers and sellers of securities through structured methods to negotiate a trade” and specifically includes DeFi.

In January 2022, similar adjustments were suggested. At the time, crypto advocacy organisations argued that the SEC’s overreach may jeopardise membership in the field. In an April 14 statement, SEC commissioner Hester Peirce – known for her pro-crypto viewpoints — criticised the new proposed rule modifications, claiming that “stagnation, centralization, expatriation, and extinction are the watchwords” of the SEC’s newest action.

Davidson in his tweets claimed that the SEC chairs are ‘ineligible’ including the past chairs. He also said that to address a lengthy history of abuses, he is offering legislation that would replace the Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission with an Executive Director who would report to the Board (where power lies). 

The SEC has been harsh towards the crypto industry for a while. They have slapped the Wells notice to multiple crypto and crypto-friendly firms like Kraken and Paxos. Demands for the security regulator to be more friendly towards the industry have been made. A need for a proper set of rules and regulations for the industry has also been expressed.