U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Commissioner Hester Peirce is reportedly vocalizing the urgent need for regulatory clarity across the crypto sector.
Pierce, who has been a long-time supporter of crypto and has continually advocated for clearer regulations surrounding digital assets, tells Reuters that SEC guidance is needed as large corporations such as Tesla and BNY Mellon look to participate in the digital asset sector.
“[The participation of corporate actors] adds to the urgency of us taking some sort of action in this area to provide more clarity…
It’s not only that there have been calls for clarity for some time and that a new administration brings the chance to take a fresh look, but it also is a moment where it seems others in the marketplace are also taking a fresh look.”
In a new interview with Forkast News, Pierce further addresses the SEC’s role in regulating digital assets, admitting that under current legislation, it can be difficult for companies to understand when an asset is a security.
“We have a specific definition of security which is actually quite broad and that has caused some people consternation and difficulty in trying to figure out exactly what the parameters of a security might be in our space… And that’s where most of the problems arise…
The commissioner hopes that in 2021, the agency will be able to work more with other regulatory bodies to help the public better decipher the boundaries of a security.
We have made some progress in 2020 in the sense that the OCC (Office of the Comptroller of Currency) has taken some steps to provide clarity both in 2020 and just now in 2021 and we’ve also seen clarity coming out places like Wyoming and I’m hopeful that the SEC will take some more steps to provide greater clarity.
But I think it has to be a combination of legislative potentially and each agency working individually to address specific questions in its domain and then having some cross-agency work which is happening, but I think we could do more cross-agency coordination.”
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