SEC Acting Chairman: Consider Amending the Definition of 'Exchange'

On March 11th, Mark Uyeda, acting chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), stated that the SEC is considering a proposal to modify the definition of "exchange", which may exclude entities or companies that support cryptocurrency trading. Uyeda pointed out at the annual Washington meeting of the International Bankers Association that the rules proposed by the SEC in 2022 under former chairman Gary Gensler included "communication protocols" in the definition of exchanges, but did not clearly define the term. He believes that linking the Ministry of Finance's market regulation with attempts to suppress the cryptocurrency market is a 'mistake'. Uyeda has requested SEC staff to provide an option to 'abandon part of the proposal'. If the 'communication protocol' section is ultimately removed, protocols that provide encryption services will be excluded from the definition of the exchange.