According to
Politico, cryptocurrency advocates are particularly opposed to Crenshaw.
If Crenshaw
were not confirmed for a second term, her seat could be used for Paul
Atkins, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee as SEC chair, giving him the
longest runway as this seat would not expire until 2029.
- Atkins can be nominated for any
open Commission slot and designated Chair regardless of the specific seat
he is given.
Trump can
employ unusual tactics to try and ensure that the SEC reflects his
party’s priorities.
- The SEC cannot seat more than three
members of the same party and, traditionally, the President nominates
individuals recommended by the senior Senate Banking Committee member of
the opposite party.
- However, there is no rule that precludes the
nomination of an Independent or members of another party, like the Green
or Libertarian parties.
- Furthermore, the SEC is not statutorily
required to have more than three commissioners. Therefore, a scenario in
which the SEC’s leadership is composed of three Republicans (Atkins as
Chair and Hester Peirce and Mark Uyeda, current Republican Commissioners)
is highly possible for the foreseeable future.
In other
regulatory agency news, according to the Wall
Street Journal, Trump’s advisors have been asking if the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) could be abolished, with the
deposit insurance fund folded into Treasury.
While
eliminating the FDIC requires an act of Congress and likely would not clear
the 60-vote threshold in the Senate, these inquiries give a sense of the
potentially unprecedented steps the Trump administration is prepared to take on
the regulatory front.
CREFC will
continue to update its membership on significant policy, personnel, and
structural changes at the regulatory agencies.
Contact
Sairah Burki (sburki@crefc.org)
with questions.