Trump’s choice of leadership for the SEC and other agencies could reshape the US crypto landscape over the next four years.
US President-elect Donald Trump will likely appoint political leaders who are friendly to the crypto sector, The Washington Post reported. November 11.
Trump’s team is initially considering leaders for financial regulatory agencies, including a chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The team has reportedly considered former SEC official and current Robinhood legal executive Daniel Gallagher for the position. He has also considered Republican SEC Commissioners Hester Peirce and Mark Uyeda, former SEC Commissioner Paul Atkins and former CFTC Commissioner Chris Giancarlo.
Trump will meet with Brian Armstrong, CEO of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, to discuss staff appointments, according to a separate Wall Street Journal report on Nov. 18. The Wall Street Journal noted that Armstrong favors Hester Peirce as the next SEC chair. as expressed in a November 8 mail.
Reuters, however, said in November 8 that Peirce does not want to serve as chairman of the SEC. He described Gallagher as the “favourite” at the time.
Gary Gensler has chaired the SEC for most of the Biden administration. Critics argue that Gensler has taken a critical stance and aggressive enforcement strategy against crypto companies. Although Trump has promised to remove Gensler as soon as he takes office, Fortune has stated that an instant dismissal it is legally impossible and has outlined the standard appointment process.
Trump has tapped several well-known cryptocurrency advocates for other positions that may have a less direct impact on cryptocurrency policy. Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick, a Bitcoin and Tether advocate, will serve as Commerce Secretary. Notably, Cantor Fitzgerald has served as custodian of Tether since 2021.
Additionally, Trump has tapped pro-cryptocurrency entrepreneurs Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead a new presidential advisory commission titled the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The commission’s abbreviation is the same as the symbol for Dogecoin (DOGE), a memecoin that Musk has frequently promoted.
The Washington Post noted that Trump’s personnel decisions are “critical” as they could give the SEC and other US agencies the ability to make cryptocurrencies a more important part of the financial ecosystem.
Trump’s decision could support his goal of turning the United States into a crypto capital, but it also has “vast implications for the global economy,” he said. He noted the risk of “catastrophic contagion” in the event of an FTX-like collapse in 2022.
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