Hester Peirce, a member of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), took to Twitter on Tuesday to express her displeasure with the establishment of 20 additional employees to the regulatory agency’s crypto enforcement unit.
Earlier on Tuesday, the commission announced plans to raise the number of people working in its newly renamed Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit, which was originally known as the Cyber Unit, from 30 to 50. The team, which is part of the Division of Enforcement, is in charge of “protecting investors in crypto markets and from cyber-related threats,” according to the agency.
Furthermore, Gary Gensler, the chairman of the said Commission, previously stated in September that he intended to expand the unit’s employees.
Peirce, nicknamed “Crypto Mom” by many in the industry for her crypto knowledge, has long been a critic of Gensler’s enforcement-heavy regulatory strategy. Gensler has remained tight-lipped about how crypto firms can adhere to regulations, preferring to regulate using enforcement measures instead.
Peirce also said she wasn’t a part of the cross-government group established by US President Joe Biden’s executive order on crypto in March, in response to an inquiry on Twitter.
SEC tries to curb crypto fraud through additional employment
The Securities and Exchange Commission of the United States plans to hire another 20 staff to oversee coin offerings, non-fungible tokens, and decentralised finance.
With the increases, the commission now has 50 employees committed to investigating law infractions in areas like as coin offers, loans, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and decentralised finance (DeFi). However, since 2017, the unit has brought over 80 enforcement cases for false and unregistered offerings, resulting in more than $2 billion in monetary relief.
Earlier, Gary Gensler had chastised exchanges like Coinbase (COIN) for failing to register with regulators when offering security-like tokens. He had also stated in September that the expanded area of duty would necessitate “a lot more employees” at the agency.
The latest SEC proposals suggest that enforcement action against DeFi could be expanded, posing significant regulatory dangers. According to sources, the agency is looking into whether or not NFTs should be under its jurisdiction.
