Crypto scores another victory as SEC Chair Gary Gensler set to leave agency in January

In a press release on Thursday, the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that its Chair Gary Gensler, who began his tenure in April 2021, will be stepping down from office on January 20, 2025, one year before his tenure is supposed to end.

Gensler set to leave SEC before new presidential administration commences

The US SEC Chair Gary Gensler announced that he will resign as Chair of the agency on January 20, 2025, after years of leadership.

In a statement issued by the agency, Gensler expressed that it has been an "honor of a lifetime" to collaborate with his colleagues at the SEC.

Since taking office at the SEC in April 2021, Gensler has advocated for central clearing in Treasury markets, introduced regulations on executive pay relative to performance, and imposed stricter regulatory scrutiny on digital assets.

"Since April 2021, the Commission has adopted several rules to ensure that investors get the disclosure they need from public companies and companies seeking to go public, broker-dealers, and investment advisors," the SEC stated.

Gensler's administration is mostly known in the crypto industry for its strict enforcement actions against major crypto firms like Ripple, Coinbase, Binance and Kraken, making him a highly controversial figure within the industry.

The resignation comes days after 18 states collaborated to sue the SEC and Gensler for what they termed an unlawful overreach toward the crypto industry.

In addition to stepping down as the head of the agency, he will also not remain as a commissioner, meaning he will not be available to defend his regulatory policies.

With Gensler's departure, crypto community members have kept a keen interest in who President-elect Donald Trump will choose as his replacement.

There have been rumours of several candidates who could lead the organization in the next adminstration, including former SEC attorney Teresa Goody Guillén and Brian Brooks, the former Acting Comptroller of the Currency who briefly led Binance US. 

Meanwhile, a court ordered the SEC to throw out the dealer rule that formed the basis of its enforcement action against Ethereum infrastructure provider Consensys.

The SEC's dealer rule required certain hedge funds and trading firms, including crypto companies, to register as dealers, subjecting them to increased regulatory scrutiny and compliance costs.

However, US District Judge Reed O'Connor in Fort Worth, Texas, ruled to invalidate the SEC's dealer registration rule, stating that the regulator had exceeded its legal authority.

He further mentioned that the regulations were too broad, potentially harming market liquidity by causing firms to reduce their trading activities.