The CEO of Intercontinental Exchange Inc (ICE), Jeffrey Sprecher, and Senator Elizabeth Warren predict that most cryptocurrencies will be regulated as securities.
Cryptocurrencies are now being regulated as securities after FTX imploded, which wiped out countless billions and tarnished crypto's reputation among regulators.
In a speech on Dec. 6 at the Goldman Sachs Group Inc. financial services conference, Sprecher assured investors crypto assets would be regulated and traded like securities.
Ultimately, this will lead to far greater consumer protections and regulatory oversight:
"What does that mean? It means more transparency, it means segregated client funds, the role of the broker as a broker-dealer will be overseeing and the exchanges will be separated from the brokers. The settlement and clearing will be separated from the exchanges."
Sprecher also argued new regulation wasn't necessary for crypto since the legal frameworks already exist for securities and are "just going to be implemented more strongly."
Sen. Warren cracks the whip
Gary Gensler, head of the SEC, is reportedly considering legislation that would grant Warren's crypto skeptic bill most crypto regulatory authority.
The online news outlet Semafor reported on Dec. 7 that Warren's crypto bill is still in its early stages. Climate change, taxation, regulation, and national security are addressed.
Warren is considering regulatory requirements such as audited financial statements and bank-like capital requirements.
Warren's spokesperson confirmed with Semafor that the senator is seeking details from the SEC.
“She’s working on crypto legislation and believes that financial regulators, including the SEC, have broad existing authority to crack down on crypto fraud and illegal money laundering,” Sarabia said.
Crypto assets have long been debated by regulators as commodities or securities, with Bitcoin at the center as the only asset that is universally regarded as a commodity.
Ether ETH $1,229 has also been discussed as a commodity at times, but with much more pushback. At Princeton University, Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) chief Rostin Behnam recently backtracked from his view that ETH is a commodity. Now he believes Bitcoin holds that status.
Michael Saylor, the founder of MicroStrategy and Bitcoin maximalist, has gone further by declaring all crypto assets other than BTC fraudulent. Saylor reiterated his opinion on the PDB Podcast on Dec. 6 that assets such as Ripple XRP $0.38, ETH, and Solana SOL $14 are all unregistered securities as they were issued and controlled by centralized entities.
