U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler reiterated the agency’s focus on enforcing compliance within cryptocurrency markets on Thursday in a speech at the Practicing Law Institute’s annual event on securities regulation.

Gensler explained that he has led efforts to regulate crypto firms that fail to follow federal securities laws since 2021. Noting that both he and former SEC Chairman Jay Clayton have said that bitcoin is not a security, and the Commission has never treated bitcoin as a security, Gensler detailed:

Our focus, rather, has been on some of the 10,000 or so other digital assets, many of which courts have ruled were offered or sold as securities.

He put the scale of crypto markets into perspective, explaining that aside from bitcoin, ether, and stablecoins, “the rest of this market approximates $600 billion. That’s less than 20 percent of the whole crypto market and less than one quarter of one percent of the worldwide capital markets.”

As part of the SEC’s regulatory stance, Gensler clarified that “those parties offering or selling securities to the public need to register and give proper disclosure to the public. Second, the intermediaries — broker-dealers, exchanges, clearinghouses — need to be registered and properly regulated as to conflicts, disclosures, and business conduct.”

He further criticized the broader crypto industry for lacking viable uses beyond speculation, stating:

This is a field in which over the years there has been significant investor harm. Further, aside from speculative investing and possible use for illicit activities, the vast majority of crypto assets have yet to prove out sustainable use cases.

Several statements in Gensler’s speech have sparked speculation on social media about his potential departure from the SEC especially after President-elect Donald Trump pledged to remove him as chair of the SEC once he takes office.

Gensler’s reflective tone and language focusing on accomplishments hint at this possibility. For example, he said: “I want to say something about the SEC and its staff. It’s a remarkable agency … It’s been a great honor to serve with them, doing the people’s work, and ensuring that our capital markets remain the best in the world.” He also said: “I’ve been proud to serve with my colleagues at the SEC who, day in and day out, work to protect American families on the highways of finance.”

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