U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Commissioner Hester Peirce, speaking at the Science of Blockchain Conference in Washington D.C. on Aug. 4, called for greater protection of cryptocurrency users’ financial privacy and sharply criticized regulatory efforts that threaten disintermediated technologies.

She underscored the importance of permissionless crypto systems in empowering individuals to maintain control over their financial activity without depending on centralized entities that are legally required to monitor and report user behavior. Peirce described blockchain-based tools such as zero-knowledge proofs, decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols, and privacy-enhancing technologies as essential infrastructure in the fight for digital liberty. Peirce stated:

We should take concrete steps to protect people’s ability not only to communicate privately, but to transfer value privately, as they could have done with physical coins in the days in which the Fourth Amendment was crafted.

In a pointed critique of existing financial surveillance laws, Peirce highlighted how the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) has transformed banks into government surveillance agents. She argued that requiring software developers or peer participants in decentralized networks to collect and report information fundamentally distorts the nature of crypto.

The SEC commissioner pushed back against proposals to impose intermediary-like obligations on decentralized networks, warning that such efforts amount to imposing outdated regulatory frameworks on a technological paradigm that is explicitly designed to function without them.

Closing her remarks, Peirce stressed the societal cost of surveillance and regulatory overreach:

Denying people financial privacy—whether through sweeping surveillance programs or restrictions on privacy-protecting technologies—undermines the fabric and freedoms of our families, communities, and nation.

She urged regulators to embrace, rather than fear, the privacy features of crypto and to resist efforts to limit lawful access to privacy-preserving tools. Peirce maintained that financial privacy is not an obstacle to law enforcement, but a fundamental right that can coexist with public safety in a well-balanced regulatory environment.

免责声明：本文章仅代表作者个人观点，不代表本平台的立场和观点。本文章仅供信息分享，不构成对任何人的任何投资建议。用户与作者之间的任何争议，与本平台无关。如网页中刊载的文章或图片涉及侵权，请提供相关的权利证明和身份证明发送邮件到support@aicoin.com，本平台相关工作人员将会进行核查。