The US senator from Pennsylvania said that the current SEC standards lead to multibillion-dollar losses for US investors and “stifle financial innovation.”
Senator Patrick Toomey sent a letter to the chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Gary Gensler, demanding clarification from him: how the agency regulates cryptocurrency activities. The Republican argues that bankrupt cryptocurrency lenders Celsius and Voyager Digital fall under the purview of the SEC. If the Commission had clarified the regulation of cryptocurrencies, things could have turned out differently, Toomey believes:
“Cryptocurrency platforms could adjust their offerings according to the specific requirements of the regulator, thereby preventing the recent losses of investors. In turn, the SEC could focus on ensuring that industry participants comply with these requirements.”
Previously, the SEC has already held accountable the lending platform BlockFi, which suspended the placement of cryptocurrency deposits of American citizens. In addition, BlockFi is required to pay $50 million to the regulator. Toomey asked Gensler a question: how do crypto lending products fall under the scope of securities laws, since the regulator has already made a decision regarding BlockFi? The senator recalled that the department was investigating compliance with regulatory requirements by Celsius and Voyager. However, the SEC did not take any action against them before the state authorities began to take enforcement action against them.
“The SEC’s persistent refusal to clarify the rules for operating crypto companies, along with indiscriminate law enforcement, harm investors and the development of innovation,” the senator said.
He also mentioned the recent accusations of Coinbase exchange executives of insider trading. The SEC statement stated that the nine tokens traded on the platform are securities and do not qualify. This suggests that the SEC still has a clear opinion why it considers these digital assets to be securities, but the agency does not state this publicly. According to Toomey, the SEC prefers to use only enforcement action. Therefore, there are many reasons to be skeptical of the SEC’s view that most digital assets are considered securities.
Senator Toomey recently introduced a bill that would make U.S. citizens waive taxes on crypto transactions less than $50. Earlier, the politician proposed a bill clarifying the rules for using stablecoins.
Source: Bits
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