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Mark Uyeda, head of the SEC, aims to improve regulatory oversight of the crypto sector, focusing on nuance rather than treating all digital assets as the same phenomenon. Gary Gensler, the previous head of the SEC, classified nearly all cryptos as securities. There was very little nuance regarding crypto with the Gensler-led SEC. The event will be live-streamed on the SEC website starting at 1 p.m. ET on 11 April. The stream will include opening comments by SEC officials and a mediated roundtable discussion with industry leaders.
The SEC, under a Biden administration, targeted many of the companies participating in the roundtable, including Coinbase, DRW, and Uniswap. Both DRW and Coinbase were sued by the SEC in 2023. Both were also relieved of their lawsuits under the new Trump administration.
On April 5, Uyeda announced that he was considering seven staff statements, with five concerning crypto, due to Trump’s deregulation executive order and Elon Musk’s DOGE department recommendations. The announcement comes as the SEC wishes to change the department’s crypto policies, focusing on withdrawing staff statements that impede innovation in the American crypto industry. After the roundtable, participants can email their suggestions to the SEC so that a task force can devise a strategy to regulate the sector fairly.
“Hearing the public’s concerns”, said Hester Peirce, head of SEC Crypto Task Force, “and suggestions helps the SEC create a clear, sensible, and fair path forward for the crypto industry. I look forward to this roundtable as we move toward crypto clarity for the benefit of the American public”.
 
The SEC has created a five-part series of roundtables with the crypto sector. On March 21, the SEC held a roundtable titled ‘Spring Sprint Toward Crypto Clarity’. After this event, the SEC declassified stablecoins as securities, distinguishing them from known securities such as common stocks. The White House has never been so supportive of the crypto industry. President Trump has even created an Executive Order to create a Bitcoin Strategic Reserve.
Stablecoins, as a result of the SEC roundtable, are considered nonsecurities, meaning that the transactions of such coins do not need to be reported. The regulatory deregulation comes when the economy faces various shocks based on supply chain disruptions, post-pandemic crises, and sanctions. One of the issues that the SEC has observed is a lack of innovation due to uncertainties regarding regulation. Many crypto leaders have said that they would prefer regulation so that they know where they stand regarding their business operations. The SEC has set strict requirements for stablecoins to be classified as nonsecurities, including a rule that U.S. dollars must back stablecoins on a one-to-one basis.
