As SEC chairman, Gary Gensler faces heightened pushback from the Crypto industry, senators and investors want CFTC to regulate crypto.
A new bipartisan Senate bill would see the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) take the lead in Bitcoin and Ethereum regulation. The move comes amid a change.org petition to oust Gensler as chairman, which has almost 24,000 signatures at press time.
Under a bill proposed by senators Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and John Boozman (R-Ark.), the SEC would no longer be the leading agency to govern bitcoin and ether trading and would provide stronger clarity about the classification of these digital assets. Gensler has been vocal about his stance on bitcoin, deemed a security by him, but has so far failed to categorize ether.
Confusion over crypto regulation has incensed companies and retail traders alike. Following the collapse of Terra (LUNA) and its stablecoin TerraUST, regulators have been scrambling to put together legal frameworks that would protect investors and the financial system.
Handing regulation of the two most prominent cryptocurrencies to the CFTC, about six times smaller than the SEC, appears to be a welcome move for some in crypto. In a Wednesday call, Boozman said the crypto industry “almost universally” prefers CFTC regulation. The senator believes this will make it easier for the bill to pass.
CFTC chairman Rostin Benham is equally in favor. Last month, he gave a speech in which he said sharing regulation responsibility in a “patchwork blanket” approach is “increasingly proving inadequate.
Investors have clamored for the removal of SEC boss, Gensler. Over 23,500 signatures have been amassed in a move to remove the former head of CFTC.
Million of retail investors were reported to be defrauded of countless millions of dollars due to the SEC chairman’s crime.
