
SEC’s Peirce – Too many crypto regulators create confusion, Congress must act
U.S Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Commissioner Hester Pierce has recently expressed her concerns over the existing regulatory framework in the cryptocurrency space. In a recent statement, she emphasized that there are too many agencies involved in regulating cryptocurrencies, which is causing unnecessary complexity and confusion.
According to Pierce, multiple regulators such as the SEC, Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), banks, state, and international authorities all have a role to play in crypto regulation. However, she believes that overlapping jurisdictions are likely to lead to conflicts and create an environment of uncertainty.
To address this issue, Pierce has proposed several steps for Congress to take. First and foremost, she suggests that lawmakers should work with existing regulators rather than creating new ones. This would ensure that there is no duplication of effort or jurisdictional confusion.
Furthermore, Pierce believes that laws should focus on platforms based in the United States, thus eliminating any potential conflicts between state and federal regulators. Additionally, she proposes that Congress make clear which agency has jurisdiction over certain types of transactions, such as primary offerings conducted under an SEC safe harbor. This clarification could be crucial in case a dispute arises over the authority of one regulator to question a non-security asset being traded on an SEC-regulated platform.
Pierce also emphasized the importance of acknowledging peer-to-peer transactions and developers of these platforms. She believes that protecting people’s ability to freely interact with each other, including through software, would provide a healthy check on regulatory accretion at centralized trading platforms and serve to acknowledge software developers’ First Amendment rights.
The SEC has been gradually shifting its stance towards cryptocurrencies over the past few years. The agency has even conducted public engagements to clarify the status of crypto as security, trading, custody, DeFi, and other related issues.
Source: https://ambcrypto.com/secs-peirce-too-many-crypto-regulators-create-confusion-congress-must-act/