Public “Vulnerable” if Exchanges Aren’t Regulated

• Gary Gensler has warned that the public remains “vulnerable” while crypto exchanges remain unregulated
• Gensler told reporters that he has staff working on ways to bring them into line
• The global nature of the crypt space causes unusual problems

The head of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Gary Gensler, has warned that the public remains “vulnerable” if cryptocurrency exchanges aren’t brought into regulatory line this year. Speaking to reporters in a virtual press conference yesterday, Gensler said he has tasked his staff with bringing the various cryptocurrency platforms that serve the US into the regulatory fold, while expressing hope that the exchanges themselves will take steps towards regulation.

Gensler Has Staff Working on the Crypto Problem

Gensler warned yesterday that “it’d be another year of the public being vulnerable” if trading platforms “don’t come into the regulated space”, a matter he has been vocal on since being appointed over a year ago. While the SEC has taken multiple individual crypto projects and companies to task over their affairs, most notably Ripple, it has yet to issue a blanket action on an entire sector of the space.

Such action may not be too far away however, with Gensler stating that he has “asked staff to look at every way to get these platforms inside the investor protection remit”. This is no easy task however given the fact that the cryptocurrency ecosystem is spread right across the world, not to mention the fact that some of the top exchanges by volume are decentralized in nature.

Exchanges to Take the Initiative?

Binance is currently banned in the US, with only Binance US allowed to serve the country, and if regulatory rules were to be applied tomorrow then there would only be a handful of exchanges allowed to operate in the country. This may of course turn out to be the case if Gensler has his way, and it seems that tough action may not be too far away if exchanges themselves don’t take steps to get in line.