Banning cryptocurrencies is a Congress decision, SEC chair Gensler says

Gary Gensler, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, told Congress Tuesday that the SEC has no plans to outlaw cryptocurrencies.

When asked by North Carolina Republican Rep. Ted Budd, a staunch crypto supporter and member of the Congressional Blockchain Caucus, if the SEC had any plans to follow China’s lead in restricting cryptocurrency in favor of a prospective central bank digital currency, the SEC said it didn’t have any plans at this time.

“That would be a decision for Congress,” Gensler said.

The price of bitcoin was $51,329.82 at the time of recent trading, representing a nearly 5% increase in the previous 24 hours.

Last week, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell told the House Financial Services Committee that the central bank had “no plans” to ban cryptocurrency, which has a market capitalization of $2.2 trillion.

No plan to outlaw crypto

Gensler’s assertion that the SEC does not intend to ban cryptocurrency is consistent with similar remarks made by Powell last week.

Questioning of the SEC’s efforts to regulate cryptocurrency comes in the face of a rising debate on Capitol Hill about how the industry and its different components, including exchanges and stablecoins, should be governed.

On Tuesday, during the hearing’s four-hour duration, Gensler answered questions on cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, exchange regulation, and decentralized finance, among other topics.

Most of his remarks on cryptocurrency regulation were reiterations of past statements, including the need for exchanges to “come in and register” with the SEC, the possible systemic risk posed by stablecoins, and the necessity for stablecoins to be subject to increased regulation.

Must get SEC nod

Responding to a request from Connecticut Democratic Rep. Jim Himes for “advice” on the matter of digital asset regulation, Gensler restated his earlier view that crypto exchanges must be registered with the SEC, while also saying decentralized exchanges would be subject to rules.

“Even in decentralized platforms, there is a centralized protocol that must be followed…  I believe that, despite the fact that they do not take custody in the same way [as centralized exchanges], they are the places where we may get the most public policy,” Gensler clarified.

The price of bitcoin, which was already up for the day, appeared to leap even higher in response to Gensler’s remarks, climbing to as high as $51,678.20 at one point.

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