SEC Chair Gensler Proposes 'One Rule Book' Crypto Regulation

The chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Gary Gensler, has reportedly proposed “one rule book” for the regulation of crypto assets. “If this industry is going to take any path forward, it will build some better trust in these markets,” said Gensler.

SEC Chairman Calls for One Rule Book for Crypto

SEC Chairman Gary Gensler has proposed “one rule book” for the regulation of crypto, the Financial Times reported Friday. He is looking to strike agreements with other financial regulators, including the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), to avoid gaps in the oversight of the crypto sector. He told the publication:

I’m talking about one rule book on the exchange.

The SEC chief elaborated that the rule should protect investors against fraud, front-running, and manipulation, in addition to providing transparency over order books.

The rule book will apply to “all trading regardless of the pair — [be it] a security token versus security token, security token versus commodity token, commodity token versus commodity token,” Gensler described.

The SEC boss revealed that he is working on a “memorandum of understanding” with his counterparts at the CFTC, which would be a formal deal to ensure that trading in digital assets has adequate safeguards and transparency. He explained that if a commodity token is listed on a platform overseen by the securities regulator, the SEC would “send that information over to the CFTC.”

Gensler opined:

By getting that market integrity envelope, one rule book on an exchange will really help the public. If this industry is going to take any path forward, it will build some better trust in these markets.

U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Cynthia Lummis recently proposed a framework that would extend the CFTC’s oversight of the crypto sector.

Last week, Gensler warned of “too good to be true” crypto products. He also recently warned that crypto exchanges often trade against their customers. Following the collapse of cryptocurrency terra (LUNA) and stablecoin terrausd (UST), the SEC chairman cautioned investors that a lot of tokens will fail.

Gensler has been criticized for taking an enforcement-centric approach to regulating crypto assets. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce said in May that the securities watchdog has dropped the ball on crypto regulation and there are long-term consequences.