On Wednesday, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler called for increased oversight on crypto trading platforms and offered new insights into his priorities in his quest to tackle the digital coin industry.
Gensler reiterated that digital asset exchanges must register with the SEC, a move that could bring firms more investor protection and compliance costs. He said the agency is open to working with platforms on sensitive issues such as holding tokens, but also said that firms could face enforcement action if they don't comply with the rules.
"Work with us," the SEC chief said in response to questions from former SEC chairman Jay Clayton during the Digital Asset Compliance and Market Integrity Summit. "These platforms need to come in, get registered and come within the investor protection remit," he added.
Gensler immediately took a tough stance on cryptocurrency after becoming the SEC chairman in April. Some of his harshest remarks were about the platforms that traded coins, which also sparked the ire of industry leaders.
This news pushed Bitcoin down 1.9% and Ethereum down 2.10%. Other tokens also showed a decline.