Gensler Summoned to Defend SEC’s Actions Taken Against Crypto

Gary Gensler, Chairman of the SEC, has been summoned by U.S. lawmakers to clarify the agency’s rulemaking and approach to the digital asset industry.

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has taken severe action against the crypto industry of late with practically no oversight from Congress as to what action it takes. However, it appears as if this will soon change. On Tuesday, Patrick McHenry, the United States House Financial Services Committee Chairman, announced during an interview that Gensler would appear before the House’s digital asset subcommittee on April 18.

#NEW: Chairman @PatrickMcHenry confirms @SECGov Chair Gary Gensler will testify before the House Financial Services Committee on April 18th.Republicans will hold @GaryGensler accountable for his flagrant disregard for the law, jurisdiction, and the APA.📺👇 pic.twitter.com/XRwcrm79PS

The U.S. House Financial Services Committee is the committee of the House of Representatives that oversees the financial industry, including securities, insurance, housing, and banking industries. The digital asset subcommittee was established in January 2023 to bridge the House Financial Services Committee gap in addressing digital assets. The subcommittee is led by Republicans French Hill and Warren Davidson as his deputy. Both representatives are avid crypto supporters, and Davidson is one of Chairman Gensler’s most prominent critics.

Chairman McHenry has said he wants to make the oversight of the SEC an essential aspect of his chairmanship and intends to give Gary Gensler more congressional oversight than in the past. McHenry confirmed April 18 will mark the first official oversight hearing regarding the SEC. McHenry said:

This will be our first oversight hearing of the Securities and Exchange Commission. This will be about his rulemaking and his approach to digital assets. It will have a large general oversight over the SEC. In terms of policy, [this will be] a serious approach in terms of us laying down […] a regulatory sphere for digital assets.

The Chairman also said that he would be closely investigating crypto asset regulation over the coming months:

I’m glad that we were able to announce that and get that going. This will be the first of many regulatory hearings throughout the summer.

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