Blockchain and Cryptocurrency: People, Culture and Tech
Peirce pointed out that while “there have been calls for clarity for some time, a new administration brings the chance to take a fresh look, but it also is a moment where it seems others in the marketplace are also taking a fresh look.”
European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde has called for a global crackdown on the world’s biggest cryptocurrency—and said existing loopholes need to be closed. With the crypto markets surging in recent weeks, this serves as further evidence that central banks are scrutinizing BTC like never before.
If appointed, his tenure at the SEC would likely be considerably different than Jay Clayton’s, whose legacy has been tainted by a considerable lack of regulatory certainty surrounding digital assets—much to the exasperation of the cryptocurrency innovators and investors, as well as some regulators like SEC Commissioner Hester “Crypto Mom” Peirce.
So how will Jay Clayton be remembered? As the Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission during all of President’s Trump’s term, Clayton has notched major successes. But his record of supporting innovation is less impressive. And right now he stands at a crossroads. Jay Clayton has a chance to be remembered as the SEC Chairman who launched the next great wave of American financial technology. Or he can forever be recalled as the man who handed America’s crypto industry over to China.
