In a recent appearance on the Unchained podcast, Congressman Tom Emmer criticized the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chair Gary Gensler for his regulatory approach towards cryptocurrencies. Emmer, who is known for his crypto-friendly stance, called Gensler a “bad-faith regulator” and accused him of missing the “truly bad actors” while blindly enforcing crypto regulations.
Emmer pointed to the recent case of Coinbase, which was served with a Wells notice by the SEC in March, as an example of Gensler’s oversight on the crypto sector.
Emmer claimed that Coinbase had tried to work with the SEC by seeking feedback on its staking products, but the SEC refused to provide feedback and instead slapped Coinbase with a Wells Notice.
Gensler has repeatedly emphasized the SEC’s “open door policy” and called on crypto firms to register with the SEC to maintain compliance with securities law. However, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has highlighted the difficulty of dealing with the SEC, and former Kraken CEO Jesse Powell has echoed similar sentiments.
Emmer and many in the crypto community have criticized the SEC’s “regulation by enforcement” approach and called for more transparent and collaborative regulation of the crypto sector. Emmer’s comments highlight the growing divide between the crypto community and regulators like Gensler who are pushing for stricter crypto regulations.
