- President-elect Donald Trump announced that Paul Atkins will replace Gary Gensler as SEC Chair.
- Trump notes that Atkins recognizes that digital assets are crucial in “making America greater than ever before.”
- Most crypto leaders believe Atkins will help the crypto industry flourish regulatory-wise.
President-elect Donald Trump confirmed on Wednesday that he has nominated Patomak Global Partners CEO Paul Atkins as the next Chairman of the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC).
Trump chooses Paul Atkins to lead SEC, garnering support from crypto industry
In a Truth Social post on Wednesday, Trump announced that Paul Atkins will lead the SEC under his upcoming administration as President of the US.
Atkins served as a SEC Commissioner under former President George W. Bush and has shown support for the digital asset industry by co-chairing the Token Alliance at the industry group Digital Chamber of Commerce since 2017.
According to an earlier FXStreet report, Atkins was considered the favorite to lead the agency under Donald Trump’s administration but had allegedly shown reluctance to accept the role due to the work it would take to forge a turnaround in the agency.
The news of his appointment comes as a positive development for the crypto market, as many believe Atkins will steer positive regulations toward the crypto industry in line with Trump’s campaign promises.
“Paul is a proven leader for common sense regulations. He believes in the promise of robust, innovative capital markets that are responsive to the needs of Investors, & that provide capital to make our Economy the best in the World,” wrote Trump in a post on his social media platform Truth Social. “He also recognizes that digital assets & other innovations are crucial to Making America Greater than Ever Before.”
Paul Atkins has spoken in support of the crypto industry on several occasions, once stating that cryptocurrencies could promote innovation and shouldn’t be treated as traditional securities.
Gary Gensler, the outgoing SEC Chair, announced last month that he would be stepping down from his role at the agency on January 20.
The digital asset industry suffered from harsh regulations during the Gensler administration, with several crypto companies, including Binance, Ripple, Kraken and Coinbase, facing lawsuits from the SEC.
However, with Atkins at the helm of the agency, many key crypto opinion leaders believe he would help the industry flourish regulatory-wise.
Ripple Labs CEO Brad Garlinghouse stated in an X post on December 4 that Atkins “will bring common sense back to the [SEC].” “It’s time to swiftly and definitively end the prohibition era on crypto,” he added.
Jake Chervinsky, Chief Legal Officer at Variant Fund, also shared his take on social media X:
It’s impossible to express the magnitude of the shift we’re likely to see at an SEC run by Paul Atkins.
Crypto has literally never existed without the overhang of uncertainty or hostility from US regulators.
This moment is a regulatory singularity before a new era for crypto
— Jake Chervinsky (@jchervinsky) December 4, 2024
Following the news, the crypto market rebounded, with Bitcoin moving above $98,000.
