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Crypto advocate and former SEC commissioner Paul Atkins is set to become the next chair of the SEC. President-elect Donald Trump named him as his pick on Wednesday.
Atkins is likely to take the SEC in a more crypto-friendly direction than his predecessor, Gary Gensler. Under Gensler’s leadership, the SEC prosecuted crypto platforms like Coinbase and Terraform Labs. Gensler argued that most digital currencies are securities, and declined to put forward any regulations that specifically treated digital assets. In EU and Asian countries where governments have implemented rules for digital assets, crypto markets have been more robust, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Atkins has questioned Gensler’s hardline stance towards digital assets, and, since 2017, has been a member of cryptocurrency organization Token Alliance, per the AP. Patomak Global Partners, the consulting firm he leads, counts crypto companies among its clients. Crypto firm FTX was a Patomak client prior to its collapse and founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s arrest on fraud charges.
Bitcoin surged upward of $103,000 following the news of Atkins’s selection.
An Atkins SEC may put regs on a diet: In a Truth Social post, Trump called Atkins a “proven leader for common sense regulations.” Atkins has advocated for less stringent regulations in the past.
During his tenure as SEC commissioner, he criticized the Dodd-Frank regulations put in place following the 2008 financial crisis. He’s argued that punishing companies for misconduct harms shareholders, and favors suing individuals instead, the Wall Street Journal reported.