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Former commissioner Paul Atkins is top candidate for SEC chair

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Paul Atkins, a former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Commissioner, is the favorite to become the next chair of the regulatory agency.

Atkins is still the leading candidate for the role that Gary Gensler will vacate in January 2025, Fox Business Eleanor Terrett said via X. The former SEC commissioner is highly appreciated as a potential top pick for President-elect Donald Trump, who announced during his campaign that he would fire Gensler on the first day of his presidency.

The outgoing SEC chair chose to step down and will exit on January 20.

Gensler’s replacement could be the pro-innovation Atkins, who was a commissioner at the securities watchdog between July 9, 2002 and August 2008. Atkins was commissioner and staffer at the agency under two SEC chairs – Richard C. Breeden and Arthur Levitt.

According to Terrett, sources at Mar-a-Lago say Trump’s transition team has the crypto-savvy ex-SEC commissioner in the lead.

The thinking is that Atkins will push the pro-innovation agenda Trump’s administration and the Republican Party are eyeing. For many, this is the next step after the largely negative four years under Gensler. The SEC chair and the commission pursued a widely criticised regulation-by-enforcement approach.

Gensler’s leadership also failed to provide any meaningful guidance for the industry. However, it charged multiple crypto companies – and suffered several legal blows in U.S. courts.

Cryptocurrencies rose sharply after Trump’s win. Bitcoin (BTC) surged to near $100k while several altcoins, including XRP, continued higher as the outgoing SEC chair announced his resignation.

Also buoying markets have been reports that the Trump administration is looking to hire the first crypto czar in the U.S.



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Last Minute Opening Brief By Outgoing Gary Gensler

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The Ripple vs SEC lawsuit is in focus again as deliberations began on filing an opening brief before the January 15 deadline. Latest developments indicate that outgoing SEC Chair Gary Gensler is preparing for last-minute filing related to appeals before pro-crypto Paul Atkins takes over.

Some believe Gensler with SEC’s chief litigation counsel Jorge Tenreiro may create headwinds for Ripple, similar to former SEC Chairman Jay Clayton.

Last Minute Appeal in Ripple Vs SEC Lawsuit

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) under Gary Gensler is likely deliberating to file its principal brief in the Ripple lawsuit. The 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals earlier extended the deadline to January 15 after a request by the securities agency.

Former SEC lawyers Marc Fagel and James Farrell cleared that the agency will continue its fight after an appeals-related opening brief in January. While the shift in the agency’s leadership may impact progress, but a decision to dismiss or withdraw the appeals in the lawsuit to affect the SEC more.

Besides, SEC’s chief litigation counsel Jorge Tenreiro, who has been deeply involved in Ripple lawsuit, to continue handling the case. It indicates that the legal battle may not shift drastically with a new SEC chair.

The regulator is set to present its arguments on secondary sales as Judge Analisa Torres’s ruling in Ripple Vs SEC lawsuit set didn’t exactly cleared the industry whether XRP is a security or commodity. This has further implications for Ripple and the crypto industry.

Notably, XRP was earlier referred to as “currency” by the U.S. DOJ and Treasury Dept’s FinCEN. And now, the SEC appealed the summary judgment on Ripple’s XRP sales through crypto exchanges, distribution to employees and others by the firm, and XRP sales by CEO Brad Garlinghouse and Executive Chairman Chris Larsen.

Pro-XRP Lawyers Expect End of Lawsuit Under Paul Atkins

Gensler to depart on Donald Trump’s inauguration day on January 20, setting the stage for Paul Atkins to take over SEC Chairman responsibilities. Pro-XRP lawyers Jeremy Hogan, Fred Rispoli, and Bill Morgan indicate high odds of resolution of the Ripple vs SEC lawsuit under pro-crypto Atkins.

Moreover, lawyers claimed Paul Atkins to work on providing clarity on crypto regulations, which remained unclear under Gensler. This could potentially lead to the end of Ripple lawsuit not otherwise. Ripple CLO Stuart Alderoty urged to “cleanse the lingering stain of Hinman from the agency” and restore trust in the agency.

Odds of XRP ETF and Price Rally Ahead

Ripple executives have earlier said that SEC continued its “failed arguments” in crypto cases as Gensler reaffirmed that crypto has no intrinsic value. Moreover, XRP ETF launch is more likely under Paul Atkins as the Trump administration is set to push for crypto regulations.

Attorney Jeremy Hogan predicts April or May as a likely timeline for the Ripple vs SEC lawsuit’s end. Moreover, he expects dismissal early, but “I’d say it’s possible but maybe unlikely.”

Analysts have been overall bullish on XRP price rally amid several developments including RLUSD launch. As per popular analyst Ali Martinez, XRP price is currently consolidating within massive massive bull pennant pattern. A pullback to $2.05 is possible unless the $2.73 resistance is broken. This could lead to a massive rally to $11.

XRP price XRP price
Source: Ali_Charts

XRP price is currently trading at $2.44, up 1% in the last 24 hours. However, trading volume remains low. Coinglass data indicates futures open interests climbed 7% over the last 24 hours.

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Varinder Singh

Varinder has over 10 years of experience and is known as a seasoned leader for his involvement in the fintech sector. With over 5 years dedicated to blockchain, crypto, and Web3 developments, he has experienced two Bitcoin halving events making him key opinion leader in the space.

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Disclaimer: The presented content may include the personal opinion of the author and is subject to market condition. Do your market research before investing in cryptocurrencies. The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.





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Ex-SEC Official Slams Gary Gensler For Crypto Enforcement Move

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The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is undergoing a leadership transition. Paul Atkins has been named as the successor to Chairman Gary Gensler. Despite Gensler having a few more weeks to lead the agency, he has made historic appointments, a trend former SEC Internet Enforcement Director John Reed Stark calls “Lame Duck” promotions. This backlash comes amid sustained advice that Gary Gensler needs to sheath his crackdown sword regarding the crypto industry.

The Obvious Fault in the Gary Gensler Appointments

In his analysis, John Reed Stark noted that “Gary Gensler is clearly attempting to pilot the SEC Enforcement Division from the grave.” He pointed out that the US SEC Chairman has promoted 5 staffs to Senior Officer roles at the Enforcement Division.

While promotions are not bad, he faulted the pace and the motive. According to John Reed, there are very few Senior Officer positions at the SEC headquaters. These roles are typically filled up over the course of a decade, not a month. To emphasize on the weight of these promotions, he said these roles are career civil service jobs. This makes the staff immune from removal unlike political appointments.

Additionally, he revealed that four out of the five promoted staffs made big crypto crackdowns over the past years. This way, if nominated SEC Chair Paul Atkins tries to probe past crypto enforcement actions, these senior officers can block such moves.

To wrap up his review, Reed Stark said since the people voted for Donald Trump, then Gary Gensler should not deliberately undermine his crypto mandate.

The Mission to Clean The Swamp

Many considered the victory of Donald Trump in the last US election as a vote of confidence for the crypto sector. Having declared himself the crypto President during the campaigns, a lot of crypto voters backed his renomination bid.

With the victory, the President is now trying to keep his promises. Though challenges are ahead, he has started making important appointments to achieve this goal. Beside Paul Atkins, the President-elect has nominated David Sacks as Crypto Czar to help drive policy changes to help the industry.

Industry leaders remain hopeful that these starting gestures will help the market. One initial way to prove the clean the swamp campaign is a potential probe of Operation Chokepoint 2.0. Coined by Nic Carter, this operation highlights how crypto firms were systemically debanked, leading to the collapse of banks like Silvergate.

 

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Godfrey Benjamin

Benjamin Godfrey is a blockchain enthusiast and journalists who relish writing about the real life applications of blockchain technology and innovations to drive general acceptance and worldwide integration of the emerging technology. His desires to educate people about cryptocurrencies inspires his contributions to renowned blockchain based media and sites. Benjamin Godfrey is a lover of sports and agriculture.

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Disclaimer: The presented content may include the personal opinion of the author and is subject to market condition. Do your market research before investing in cryptocurrencies. The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.





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Why Is US SEC Chair Gary Gensler Accusing D.O.G.E Chief Elon Musk?

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With just over a month left for his tenure at the office, US SEC Chair Gary Gensler has slapped a notice on tech billionaire Elon Musk by initiating an investigation into Neuralink, Musk’s brain-computer interface (BCI) company. Musk’s lawyer Alex Spiro has responded to this by putting out the details of the charges.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will be preparing for additional charges against Tesla Chair Elon Musk while also reopening an investigation into his neurotechnology company, Neuralink.

Musk’s lawyer, Alex Spiro, has responded to the SEC chair Gary Gensler in a letter shared on the social media platform X. The letter notes that the US SEC has given Musk a 48-hour deadline to accept the monetary settlement or face charges on “numerous counts”.

However, the securities regulator has failed to mention the exact nature of these charges while referring to a multi-year investigation by the agency. Additionally, the SEC has revived its probe into Neuralink, Musk’s brain-computer interface venture. Musk wrote: “Oh Gary, how could you do this to me?”

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Calls for an investigation into Neuralink first surfaced back in 2023. Back then lawmakers raised concerns over Musk’s claims regarding the safety of the company’s brain implant technology. Slamming the SEC, Musk’s lawyer Alex Spiro said that the recent SEC actions are nothing but an “endless investigation campaign” targeting the billionaire entrepreneur.

US SEC Chair Gary Gensler holds a very bad reputation, especially in the crypto space, for his high-handed regulatory approach. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said that the company lost more than $150 million in a legal battle with the SEC because of Gensler.

Elon Musk’s history with the SEC includes a $20 million settlement in 2018 over his tweets claiming that Tesla would go private and that the necessary funding had been secured. Elon Musk also tasked his AI, Grok, with creating an illustration of SEC Chair Gary Gensler. The resulting image depicted a snail in a business suit, referencing Gary the Snail from SpongeBob SquarePants.

Will Paul Atkins Transform Crypto

The crypto community has been celebrating Gary Gensler’s ouster calling it an end to the tough regulatory regime for the industry. All eyes are on incoming SEC chair Paul Atkins who is set to revive the SEC with friendlier crypto reforms.

“Under his leadership, the SEC may move away from aggressive tactics that prioritize headline-grabbing penalties over substantive outcomes,” wrote lawyers at US legal firm Anderson PC.

On the other hand, Elon Musk will be working at the Department of Government Efficiency (D.O.G.E) and has recently proposed measures to end US inflation with the focus on cutting the federal spending.

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Bhushan Akolkar

Bhushan is a FinTech enthusiast with a keen understanding of financial markets. His interest in economics and finance has led him to focus on emerging Blockchain technology and cryptocurrency markets. He is committed to continuous learning and stays motivated by sharing the knowledge he acquires. In his free time, Bhushan enjoys reading thriller fiction novels and occasionally explores his culinary skills.

Disclaimer: The presented content may include the personal opinion of the author and is subject to market condition. Do your market research before investing in cryptocurrencies. The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.





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