Gary Gensler, chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, reiterated his previous criticisms of the crypto industry in an interview with Bloomberg on June 25, stating that the industry is highly concentrated and plagued by “serious violations.”
Gensler downplayed the decentralization of the crypto industry, claiming that a few platforms are “concentrating and mixing things that we would never allow elsewhere.”
He cited specific violations such as trading against clients, wash trading, and investing before contracts are listed.
He noted that many “leaders” in the crypto asset space are either “in jail” or “waiting to go to jail.”
Gensler added, “I say this, you may scoff, but this is a serious matter, not an overreaction, and it truly relates to the protection of investors.”
The violations mentioned by Gensler not only involve securities laws, but also the Bank Secrecy Act, the Commodity Exchange Act, and anti-money laundering laws.
Gensler said that many crypto asset platforms collaborate with a large number of token traders, and according to national laws and the Supreme Court’s position, these tokens are considered securities without prior judgment.
These comments echo Gensler’s previous statements about most crypto assets being securities. He emphasized that tokens are offered as investment contracts and stated that the American public is not aware of the legal disclosure requirements.
Gensler pointed out that intermediary institutions such as crypto asset exchanges and brokers handle hundreds of assets and posed a question: “Are there no entrepreneurs in the middle of these products? This is a bit illogical.”
Gensler stated that this issue, combined with violations, has led the SEC to file lawsuits against numerous companies because violations have harmed the interests of the general public.
Furthermore, Gensler refused to answer political questions, including speculation earlier by Mark Cuban that Gensler’s crypto asset policies may cost Biden the election.
Gensler only responded, “I don’t talk about elections, but others can.”
He also declined to comment on the broader political movement caused by crypto assets.
Regarding the approval of a spot Ethereum ETF that the public is concerned about, Gensler did not provide details, only stating that the process is “progressing smoothly.”
