SEC Chair Blames Journalists For Asking Him About Crypto So Much

One of the government's most powerful enemies in crypto believes journalists are questioning him about the booming asset class too much.

SEC Chairman Gary Gensler appeared in a nine-minute interview with CNBC on Wednesday and blamed the host for asking such a “large percentage” of questions focused on cryptocurrencies.

Gensler is tired of questions about cryptocurrencies

Gensler's interviewer, Andrew Ross Sorkin, Proposal That journalists' focus on the industry may be proportional to the SEC's interest in the space. The president disagreed.

“No, it's a function of where your attention is,” Gensler responded. “I've been on your show – dozens of times – and every show you ask about is about cryptocurrencies.”

Gensler noted that cryptocurrencies — which currently have a market capitalization of $2.3 trillion — are just a drop in the bucket next to the $110 trillion capital markets made up of traditional stocks and bonds.

As for its size, he said cryptocurrencies account for “a large portion of scams and problems” across the market, which may also help explain journalists' narrow focus on the space.

“I think this will be a majority match for cryptocurrencies, while capital markets are at $110 trillion,” Gensler said. “So it's also about where the financial media is focusing.

Sorkin has already asked more about cryptocurrencies — including whether the SEC views Ethereum (ETH) as a security, and about the agency's latest Wells Notice against cryptocurrency and stock trading platform Robinhood for alleged securities law violations. Gensler's answers were as indirect as usual, while still insisting that “many” cryptocurrencies are securities under the law.

Clear focus on cryptocurrencies by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Over the past 18 months, the SEC has filed numerous lawsuits and Wells Notices against the world's largest cryptocurrency companies with ties to the United States.

These include cryptocurrency exchanges like Binance, Coinbase, Kraken, and Robinhood, along with development teams like Uniswap Labs and stablecoin issuers like Paxos.

In 2023 alone, the SEC took 43 enforcement actions against digital asset market participants, according to Cornerstone Research. The sheer number of actions has inspired other cryptocurrency companies — like ConsenSys — to preemptively sue the SEC before being accused of violating what remains a legal gray area.

“We don't talk about whether someone, in our opinion, is not following the law unless we actually file a lawsuit,” Gensler stated.

“A lot of people have lost their hard-earned money in this field that you seem so fascinated with,” he added.

Gensler has not held back from voicing his opinion on cryptocurrencies in his capacity — even in his duties as president.

After his agency approved Bitcoin ETFs in January, Gensler published an unusual blog post confirming that the agency had not yet approved Bitcoin as an asset. Speaking to CNBC the next day, he also said that Bitcoin is fundamentally centralized.