The chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
(SEC), Gary Gensler, says that Satoshi Nakamoto’s innovation is real.
“It has been and could continue to be a catalyst for change in the
fields of finance and money,” he said.
Satoshi Nakamoto’s Innovation Is Real
SEC Chairman Gary Gensler talked about bitcoin and cryptocurrency regulation last week at the Aspen Security Forum where he outlined his plans
to regulate the crypto space. He began by referencing the Bitcoin
whitepaper and its creator, the pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto.
“His innovation spurred the development of crypto assets and the
underlying blockchain technology,” Gensler said about Satoshi, adding
that “the crypto asset class has ballooned” and is now worth about $1.83
trillion.
Noting that when he was at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) prior to being confirmed
as the head of the SEC, he researched, wrote, and taught on the subject
of bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and blockchain technology. Gensler opined:
In that work, I came to believe that, though there was a
lot of hype masquerading as reality in the crypto field, Nakamoto’s
innovation is real. Further, it has been and could continue to be a
catalyst for change in the fields of finance and money.
Unlike fiat money, Gensler said that “At its core, Nakamoto was
trying to create a private form of money with no central intermediary,
such as a central bank or commercial banks.” However, he believes that
currently “No single crypto asset, though, broadly fulfills all the
functions of money.”
The chairman elaborated that crypto assets “are highly speculative
stores of value,” asserting that they “haven’t been used much as a unit
of account.” He further opined:
We also haven’t seen crypto used much as a medium of
exchange. To the extent that it is used as such, it’s often to skirt our
laws with respect to anti-money laundering, sanctions, and tax
collection. It also can enable extortion via ransomware, as we recently
saw with Colonial Pipeline.
Gensler noted that he is “technology-neutral,” but emphasized that
when it comes to cryptocurrency regulation, “I am anything but public
policy-neutral.”
He continued: “As new technologies come along, we need to be sure
we’re achieving our core public policy goals. In finance, that’s about
protecting investors and consumers, guarding against illicit activity,
and ensuring financial stability.”
Meanwhile, the former MIT professor claimed that there is clarity in
crypto rules, emphasizing that many tokens “are offered and sold as
securities.” Regarding whether something is a security, he described:
There’s actually a lot of clarity on that front … Certain
rules related to crypto assets are well-settled. The test to determine
whether a crypto asset is a security is clear.
However, many people disagreed with the SEC chairman that the rules
are clear, including Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse who is currently being
sued by the agency over the sale of XRP tokens.
The Ripple CEO said: “In my judgment, if you’re dealing with an
alcoholic that doesn’t want to admit they have an alcohol problem, to
say that we have certainty, we have clarity, is like the alcoholic
saying ‘I don’t have a problem’. This is the elephant in the room.”
source link : https://news.bitcoin.com/sec-chairman-satoshi-nakamotos-innovation-real-crypto-rules-clear/
