Congress must determine which regulator has authority over cryptocurrency markets, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Commissioner Hester Peirce said Wednesday—as her organization cracks down on crypto companies and market participants seek greater regulatory clarity.
U.S. Lagging Behind on Regulatory Clarity
Speaking at FT’s Crypto and Digital Assets Summit, Peirce said “there are questions about who has the authority” to make rules about crypto, which is something that has to be determined by Congress.
Notably, multiple people testified in a congressional hearing about digital assets on Wednesday that there is a desire to split specific responsibilities related to crypto between the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Peirce’s comments come amid the SEC crackdown on crypto companies. In the past few months, the SEC has taken action against Coinbase (COIN), Kraken, and Bittrex among others.
SEC Chair Gary Gensler has repeatedly said there is no lack of clarity on rules for crypto platforms, just a lack of compliance.
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