Outgoing SEC Commissioner Peirce Says Crypto Rules Should Have Come Earlier

SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce said in an interview with The Block that she regrets not putting in place digital-asset regulatory policy sooner.
Peirce said industry resources were drained by unnecessary conflicts over regulation and enforcement, and that a framework focused on protecting investors and developers was needed.
Peirce said it is important to protect Americans' personal data while developing ways to efficiently build and apply new digital-asset technologies and create an environment where developers can focus on research.

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Hester Peirce, a commissioner at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission who is set to leave the agency on Oct. 2, said she regrets that a regulatory framework for digital assets was not established sooner.

In an interview with The Block published on Sept. 28, Peirce said she still regrets not pushing earlier to develop crypto regulatory policy. The industry, she said, spent too many resources on unnecessary conflicts over regulation and enforcement.

Peirce said regulators and the industry could have made the environment less favorable for those seeking to misuse digital assets if they had focused their energy on building a framework that protects investors and developers. She added that developers should be able to focus on research without bearing responsibility for the illegal misuse of the tools they create.

She also said policymakers should consider how to efficiently develop and apply new crypto technologies while protecting Americans' personal data. Peirce, who has served at the SEC for about nine years, is set to join Regent University School of Law as an associate professor in November.