A recently emerged video that dates back to 2018 showed that the current Chairman of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) – Gary Gensler – classified several cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH), as “not securities”.
His position nearly five years ago contrasts with his current view. Gensler has repeatedly argued that the only digital asset that could be classified as a commodity is BTC.
Gensler’s perspective before becoming SEC Chairman
The video, which has gone viral on Twitter, reveals how Gensler says four of the major cryptocurrencies – Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Litecoin (LTC) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) – should not be treated as securities.
Chairman Gensler in 2018 at a Bloomberg conference in New York:
“Bitcoins. Ether. Litecoin. Bitcoin cash. Why did I name these four? They are not securities.
What’s Goldman Gary going to say about this one? False deep? pic.twitter.com/p7DJlYkJIt
— Ryan Selkis 🪳 (@twobitidiot) June 12, 2023
The video dates back to 2018 when Gensler was chairman of the Maryland Financial Consumer Protection Commission. He was appointed Chairman of the SEC in 2021 – a US government agency that regulates and oversees securities markets.
The agency is also known for its tough actions against the cryptocurrency industry and recently filed lawsuits against two of the heavyweights in the industry – Binance And Coinbase. The main accusations are that they offered trading services with unregulated securities, such as BNB, SOL, ADA, MATIC and other well-known assets.
It should be noted that in its prosecution, the agency did not address the four cryptocurrencies labeled as “not securities” by Gensler in 2018.
BTC is a commodity and an awkward silence regarding ETH
Shortly after joining the SEC, Gensler shifted his stance on the cryptocurrency space somewhat. The American, who confessed his affection for the market in the summer of 2021, later called it was “highly speculative” and said he had never owned or used digital currencies.
He also has affirmed many times that “anything other than bitcoin” is a security, when the main cryptocurrency is the only one that functions as a commodity.
Unlike BTC, Gensler wasn’t very clear on the status of ETH. He avoid a straightforward answer on whether the second-largest crypto asset should be classified as a commodity or a security in early 2022.
Gensler did the same when interrogates by the House Financial Services Committee in April of this year. Rather, he gave imprecise answers to repeated questions posed by Patrick McHenry without specifying in detail.
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