Commissioner SEC Hester Peirce in an interview with Cointelegraph said that the agency’s current policy toward the crypto industry may undergo changes.
Ms. Peirce said she did not expect the Commission to be so slow in seeking solutions to a regulatory framework for digital assets when she joined the Commission in 2018.
“I haven’t seen much improvement. There are plenty of people in the agency who know quite a lot about cryptocurrency, whether in FinHub or in other divisions. There are employees who are actually very well informed, and I think that, during the time I’ve been there, the situation has changed,” she said.
She said that, for now, it is not possible to compare the agency’s progress toward implementing rules for the industry with global leaders such as Switzerland and Singapore.
SEC under the leadership of Gary Gensler has faced criticism from many quarters for its approach to regulating cryptocurrencies through enforcement actions.
At the time of writing, the agency is pursuing civil lawsuits against Coinbase, Binance, and Ripple. Earlier this year, the Commission’s claims were settled by major Bitcoin exchanges Kraken and Bittrex. The SEC also said that a number of other CEX and DeFi protocols for potential violations of the law.
Peirce declined to comment on any cases involving the Commission and urged industry players to approach the agency with regulatory questions. She hinted that the SEC could undergo a reversal in its thinking regarding crypto-related policy:
“Don’t count the United States out. This, too, shall pass, just as the confusion will. The United States is a good place to develop projects, and I want it to stay that way.”
She emphasised that when engaging with the Commission, one should present concrete ideas and pathways for which regulatory clarity is required.
Earlier in July, Peirce said that the ambiguity of crypto-industry regulation is harmful to American citizens.