Atkins, Ex-SEC Commissioner, Could Succeed Gensler

Digital Asset Defender

Atkins served as a Republican SEC commissioner during the George W. Bush administration, after which he founded Patomak Global Partners, a consulting firm for major financial industry clients.

He is a strong proponent of digital assets and fintech companies. He has also testified before Congress on ways to restructure the agency’s operations and reduce what some industry participants would consider duplicative or overly burdensome regulations.

Trump had promised to fire Gensler on “day one,” a vow that became moot when the former Goldman Sachs banker announced earlier this month he would step down in January.

Gensler led the SEC with an ambitious agenda, cracking down on crypto, following a series of high-profile collapses, including the implosion of Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX exchange.

Gensler’s SEC was frequently criticized by the industry as making regulations via enforcement instead of making clear how to play by the rules, an approach that could change under the new administration.

Trump embraced cryptocurrency during his campaign, after once describing it as a scam against the dollar. He promised supporters he’d create a strategic Bitcoin stockpile, appoint crypto-friendly regulators and end the outgoing administration’s “anti-crypto crusade.”

The SEC under its new chief is expected to stay focused on what’s considered bread-and-butter priorities: rooting out fraud, taking aim at insider trading, stopping Ponzi schemes and curbing inaccurate, misleading or overly lofty disclosures.