Source: Cointelegraph Original: "{title}"
Former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Jay Clayton has confirmed his appointment as the Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, after Democratic Senate leaders used a "blue slip" to block his confirmation vote.
This appointment was confirmed more than five months after President Trump nominated Jay Clayton for the position. Clayton succeeds Damian Williams, who played a significant role in the convictions related to former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried's case and other major cryptocurrency cases.
On April 22, Clayton stated that his top priorities would be to protect public safety, ensure the integrity of the U.S. financial system, safeguard national security interests, and combat fraud, particularly fraud targeting the elderly and the most vulnerable populations.
Clayton's temporary appointment stems from Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer using a blue slip on April 16 to block the confirmation, effectively preventing a Senate vote and formal confirmation of his position.
Senators can use blue slips to block nominees for U.S. Attorneys or District Court judges from their state.
Clayton can serve as Acting U.S. Attorney for up to 120 days without Senate confirmation. After that, he will need to secure a Senate vote or obtain an extension of his temporary status from the Manhattan federal court.
Trump criticized Schumer's actions on April 17 via Truth Social, pointing out that Clayton had bipartisan support in the Senate and had met all relevant requirements.
Clayton's temporary position will last until around August 20. As the top law enforcement official for the Southern District of New York, his jurisdiction includes counties such as New York, Bronx, Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, Orange, Dutchess, and Sullivan.
The Southern District of New York is the oldest federal court jurisdiction in the U.S. and frequently handles significant cases involving white-collar crime due to its location in the U.S. financial center.
During his tenure as SEC Chairman from May 4, 2017, to December 23, 2020, Clayton initiated 56 lawsuits against cryptocurrency companies.
In a December 2021 interview with CNBC, Clayton stated that he is a "strong believer in crypto technology," adding that "the efficiencies brought by tokenization to the financial system and other areas are enormous."
Clayton also praised Bitcoin (BTC) as an important store of value, but did not approve Bitcoin exchange-traded products during his time as SEC Chairman.
The first U.S. Bitcoin investment product was approved in 2021 under then-SEC Chairman Gary Gensler.
Related: Cryptocurrency companies move into Wall Street, with increasing synergies.
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