#SEC Chair: Crypto Markets Are Filled With Bad Actors#

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler recently said in an interview that the cryptocurrency space is rife with “bad actors” and is a “non-compliant” area where market sentiment has a far greater impact than fundamentals. He noted that while Bitcoin accounts for 60% to 80% of the cryptocurrency market value, the remaining 10,000 to 15,000 crypto projects also raise funds from the public, with many ultimately failing and a significant number of pump-and-dump schemes and other issues. Gensler emphasized that he has made some progress in the area of cryptocurrency regulation since taking office, continuing the work of his predecessor, Jay Clayton. Over the past four years, the SEC has launched about 100 enforcement actions against the cryptocurrency space, accounting for 5% of its enforcement work. Gensler also said there is still work to be done in regulating altcoins and intermediaries in the crypto market. He will step down as SEC Chair on January 20.