SEC’s Crypto Enforcement Soars Under Gensler: 10-Year High

In 2023, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) increased its crackdown on cryptocurrency firms, bringing forth 46 enforcement actions, more than double the number of cases seen in 2021. A report released by Cornerstone Research on January 24 revealed that this surge in enforcement activity marked the highest number of crypto-related cases brought by the SEC since 2013, indicating that digital assets had become a major focus for the commission. Among these actions, the SEC imposed $281 million in monetary penalties for settlements and significantly increased the number of administrative proceedings compared to the previous year.

Simona Mola, the author of the report from Cornerstone Research, highlighted the substantial rise in SEC enforcement actions within the crypto space over the past two years, emphasizing the agency’s commitment to utilizing enforcement as a tool. The number of SEC enforcement actions in the crypto sector has steadily grown since Gary Gensler assumed the role of commission chair in 2021. Under Gensler’s leadership, there was a 50% increase in SEC actions relating to cryptocurrencies in 2022, followed by a further 53% increase in 2023.

The report from Cornerstone Research also revealed that out of the 46 enforcement actions taken in 2023, two were specifically related to non-fungible tokens (NFTs), while others targeted initial coin offerings (ICOs). Since 2013, approximately half of the 108 litigation cases brought by the SEC have been resolved in the courts. Ongoing cases involve prominent exchanges such as Binance, Coinbase, Terraform Labs, Ripple, and Kraken.

However, Gensler has faced criticism from the crypto community for his approach of enforcing regulations without providing a clear regulatory framework for firms operating in the United States. Prior to the SEC’s actions against Coinbase, the exchange claimed to have held over 30 meetings with commission officials, spanning nine months, without receiving any feedback. Despite the increased enforcement actions, the SEC made history on January 10 by approving the listing of shares of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for the first time. In response, Gensler clarified that the commission’s approval of the ETFs did not indicate an endorsement or approval of Bitcoin itself.