SEC And CFTC Chairs Disagree On Whether Ether Is A Security

October 28, 2022 5:37 pm Comments

It looks like there is a lot of disagreement between the heads of the two major federal market regulators on the hot debate of whether or not Ethereum (ETH) is considered a security.

This was revealed by the head of the CFTC Rostin Behnam who suggested details that indicated that his position on this matter was different from the opinion of SEC Chair Gary Gensler.

The legal status of ether is critical because it would ultimately decide if the CFTC or the SEC would be the regulator for the asset.

This would also have greater implications on how other crypto assets would be treated going forward so the debate would affect the industry as a whole.

TheBlock.co reports:

“Ether, I’ve suggested that it’s a commodity, I know Chairman Gensler thinks otherwise — or at least hasn’t certainly declared one or the other,” said Behnam at an event in New York City hosted by Rutgers University.

Behnam also noted that, while the SEC and CFTC are both members of the Financial Stability Oversight Council, that council focused on systemic stability rather than defining jurisdictions in recommending Congress grant regulators expanded oversight and rulemaking power in digital asset spot markets.

Behnam and Gensler both sit on the super committee of regulators, which Behnam described as not the place “to figure out the details of how we’re going to split it up,” pointing instead to Congress as the right entity to set those boundaries.

Whether or not the CFTC or the SEC gets more power when it comes to regulating the crypto industry, the future is still unclear on which is actually better.

It seems that the CFTC also has plans to do significant crypto regulations if it does gain control but many speculators still believe that this option would be better than the SEC.

After all, the SEC under Gary Gensler’s leadership has been following “regulation by litigation” which has caused a lot of uncertainty for crypto firms and investors.

The unclear guidelines in the space is seen as a major obstacle for future growth and innovation of the crypto industry.

Binance.com concludes:

Behnam continued: “I get really annoyed when persons start to talk about the CFTC as a more friendly regulator.”

Behnam previously warned that the regulator will not be “soft touch” if it receives control over crypto commodities markets, which the CFTC has praised for its track record in crypto enforcements.

Although Gensler himself expressed support for a more active CFTC role in regulating crypto commodities, he also hinted in comments to the press last month that proof-of-stake cryptocurrencies might be considered securities.

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