This video can be viewed at the below link.[1]

Hi, this is Gary Gensler, and welcome back to Office Hours.

What does the SEC have to do with crypto, and why is the Chair of the SEC talking about crypto?

Now technology has come along decade after decade—but those that have a chance to thrive, to grow, come within the public policy frameworks.  

To be clear, I think that the SEC should be technology neutral. But one thing we’re not neutral on is investor protection.

Our agency – the SEC – has had rules for decades to protect people when companies want to raise money from them or when we as investors buy and sell securities on an exchange, like the New York Stock Exchange.

But you see, crypto trading platforms, crypto lending platforms, don’t have same level of investor protection that you’ve come to expect buying and selling stocks on a stock exchange, investing in a mutual fund or 401(k). 

In the years since Bitcoin was started, literally thousands of other tokens have been launched, many of which—traded on platforms—may well be securities under our laws.  

That means if the platforms and certain of the tokens don’t register with the SEC, they’re non-compliant with the important federal protections in our laws.

So I’ve asked the staff of the SEC to use all our authorities, anywhere we can, to uncover any wrongdoing.

Where our authorities aren’t enough, I’ve also recommended to Congress for them to consider filling those gaps with the goal of investor protection.

To those currently or considering investing in crypto, please remember: Not only are they a highly speculative asset class, but there are also significant gaps in the investor protection afforded to you.

I think that moving forward, promoting investor protection is not only good for you and for anyone who considers investing in these assets. I think that it’s the only real, viable path forward with this nascent technology.

See, at the heart of finance is trust, and trust rests on investor protection.

And so that’s what the SEC has to do with crypto: investor protection.