Focus Newly surfaced video sparks online debate about which tokens SEC Chair Gensler believes are securities |Get all the essential market news and expert opinions in one place with our daily newsletter.Receive a comprehensive recap of the day’s top stories directly to your inbox.| ( [Kitco News](/)) – A newly discovered video from 2018 has reignited the debate over which tokens are and are not securities according to U.S.law, and whether Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler’s present-day declarations represent his true beliefs.
The brief 12-second video clip , which was shot at a 2018 Bloomberg event for institutional investors in New York City, features then-MIT professor Gensler listing a number of important cryptocurrencies which he says unambiguously do not qualify as securities.“Over 70% of the crypto market is Bitcoin, Ether, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash,� Gensler says while addressing the audience.“Why did I name those four? They’re not securities.� The video was widely shared across crypto twitter on June 12, and it set off another round of speculation about what Gensler believed and when, and why his positions appear to have changed so dramatically in recent years.
“What’s Goldman Gary going to say about this one?â€� tweeted Ryan Selkis, founder and CEO of blockchain analysis firm Messari.“Deep fake?â€� In a follow-up tweet, Selkis linked to U.S.House Financial Services Committee Chair Patrick McHenry, who also had difficulty getting regulatory clarity from Gensler during his recent testimony on April 18.— Ryan Selkis 🪳 (@twobitidiot) [@PatrickMcHenry]this should help Chair Gensler remember how to answer your question from last month Mr.Chairman.
[June 12, 2023] “ $BTC , $ETH , $LTC and $BCH are not securities.I agree,� said MetaCFO.“Let’s get some regulatory clarity on these assets.� Others replied with the hashtag #FireGaryGensler , which has also been reinvigorated after lawmakers in the House of Representatives introduced a new bill on Monday calling for Gensler’s removal as Chair of the SEC.The bill, titled the SEC Stabilization Act, was introduced to the House by Rep.Warren Davidson (R-OH) and House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN).“U.S.
capital markets must be protected from a tyrannical Chairman, including the current one,� Davidson said in a statement posted on Twitter.“That’s why I’m introducing legislation to fix the ongoing abuse of power and ensure protection that is in the best interest of the market for years to come.It’s time for real reform and to fire Gary Gensler as Chair of the SEC.� But beyond the short-list of cryptocurrencies which are declared “not securities� is the broader implication of the video: Gensler appears to be in the midst of making a case for why the vast majority of the cryptocurrency ecosystem is not violating securities laws.
This begs the separate question of why the Securities and Exchange Commission would be the regulator for them, but in any case it reinforces the view that pre-government Gensler was broadly pro-crypto and didn’t see digital assets in conflict with securities regulation.This view appears to be reinforced by another Gensler video making the rounds, this one posted in September of 2021.“We need to look at all these tokens, I think that will bring clarity to the market,â€� Gensler is seen telling the audience.“We did a little analysis, I’ve done this analysis but with the help of some others, on just the big five, Bitcoin, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, all strikes that they’re probably not – there’s a non-lawyer, I get it – but bitcoin and so forth, probably not [a security].â€� “And why do I say that? Because Bitcoin came into existence as mining began, as an incentive in validating a distributed platform,â€� he said.
“No initial token offering no pre-mined coins, no kind of common enterprise under that Howey test, and Litecoin and Bitcoin were both forks off of that.â€� Referring to the apparent contradiction between MIT Gensler and SEC Gensler, twitter user MintFace summarized it in uniquely crypto terms: that was Gary Classic before the hard fork 😂— MintFace ğŸ�’ (@mintfaced) [June 13, 2023].
