US congressman Emmer says SEC chair Gensler is ‘incompetent’ US congressman Emmer says SEC chair Gensler is ‘incompetent’
U.S. lawmaker Tom Emmer said the SEC, under Gary Gensler, had consistently brought enforcement actions against crypto firms.
2 min read
Updated: Jul. 16, 2023 at 10:03 am UTC
Jonathunder / CC BY-SA 3.0 / Wikimedia. Remixed by CryptoSlate
U.S. lawmaker Tom Emmer described the SEC chairman Gary Gensler as an “incompetent cop on the beat” who puts “everyday Americans in harm’s way and [pushes] American firms into the hands of the Chinese Communist Party.”
In an April 18 Twitter thread, Emmer highlighted several parts of Gensler’s appearance before the House Financial Services Committee — where he failed to appropriately answer the lawmaker’s questions.
Emmer rips into Gensler
Emmer said the SEC had “finalized ZERO rules for crypto companies to comply with” but has consistently brought enforcement actions against these firms.
According to Emmer, the regulatory chief was at the helm of the SEC affairs when the two most significant crypto fraud events occurred — the collapse of FTX and Terra Luna’s crash. Emmer noted that these events showed that Gensler was “doing nothing to stop these criminals before they defrauded Americans” despite meeting FTX at least twice before its collapse.
Besides that, Emmer said Gensler was regulating the crypto industry “inappropriately through public statements.” The lawmaker cited examples of previous Gensler statements where he urged crypto firms to “come in and register” with the SEC to buttress his point.
Emmer added:
“[Gensler] often contradict[s] himself, which only instills further chaos in the marketplace.”
The lawmaker concluded that the “hostile regulatory environment” was pushing crypto firms abroad. Emmer said pushing the industry outside U.S. shores would not protect American investors — as evidenced by the FTX collapse.
“Existing SEC rules make no sense for blockchain-based companies, and following them will actually kill these businesses. Your regulatory style lacks flexibility and nuance.”
Meanwhile, the SEC chair reiterated that the Commission was trying to regulate the crypto industry into compliance to protect American investors.
Several crypto stakeholders have criticized Gensler’s appearance before the House Financial Services Committee for failing to address the major issues battling the industry.
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Oluwapelumi values Bitcoin's potential. He imparts insights on a range of topics like DeFi, hacks, mining and culture, underlining transformative power.
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FTX
FTX is a defunct cryptocurrency exchange, currently in bankruptcy proceedings, that was founded by Sam Bankman-Fried and Zixiao “Gary” Wang in May 2019.
Thomas Emmer, an American attorney and seasoned politician, has represented Minnesota’s 6th congressional district in the U.S.
Gary Gensler is an American government official and former investment banker who President Joseph Biden nominated to chair the U.S.