Outgoing SEC Chair Gary Gensler Lashes Out at Crypto Industry

In a 10-minute appearance on Bloomberg Television that you can watch below, Gary Gensler reflected on overseeing the nation’s $120 trillion capital market, which he said “touches everything in our economy.” Asked about the state of crypto—a sector he once likened to the “wild west”—he pointed out that digital assets constitute “less than 1 percent” of U.S. financial markets yet occupy about 5 percent of the SEC’s enforcement focus.

“In this (crypto) field, it is rife with bad actors,” Gensler stated. “I’ve never seen a field that’s so much wrapped up in sentiment and not so much about fundamentals.”

Gensler noted the SEC under his leadership brought roughly 100 enforcement actions against crypto-related firms—building on the 80 actions initiated by his predecessor, Jay Clayton. He cited high-profile cases against FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, and Terra ecosystem creator Do Kwon as examples of the industry’s “noncompliance” and “pump and dump schemes.”

“These 10 or 15,000 projects, many of them will not survive,” he warned. “They’re like venture capital investments. They’re not going to survive. But there are also a fair number of small pump and dump schemes and other things in the U.S.”

Critics within the crypto space accuse Gensler of taking a hardline approach by classifying most digital tokens as securities and urging companies to register under existing regulations. Gensler, however, maintained that the SEC’s stance is rooted in decades-old law, stressing that the agency’s mandate is to protect investors and ensure fair markets.

“If you’re not willing to be attacked, you can’t go into the public square and debate policy,” Gensler said, referencing the harsh criticism he faced from crypto advocates. “I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished, but there’s still work to be done.”

Gensler will leave office on the same day President-elect Donald Trump begins his second term. His replacement, former SEC Commissioner Paul Atkins, is expected to pivot the agency’s policies toward a more crypto-friendly approach. Atkins previously served as an SEC commissioner for six years and has been openly critical of Gensler’s aggressive crypto enforcement tactics.

Yet, in his final remarks, Gensler remained resolute, reiterating that investor protection—particularly against scams, fraud, and market manipulation—must continue to guide regulatory efforts in the emerging cryptocurrency industry.

What Gensler always failed to realize, however, is that Bitcoin and crypto assets offer higher returns than any other asset class.

Bitcoin outperforms all other asset classes, Source: CaseBitcoin

This naturally attracts new investors, and by stifling the industry for so long, Gensler made it harder for everyday American investors to get ahead. Imagine if they’d been able to buy a Bitcoin ETF two years ago?

Goodbye Gary Gensler, we’ll miss you.