President-elect Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he intends to nominate crypto advocate Paul Atkins to head the Securities and Exchange Commission.
President Trump said Atkins, CEO of Patmac Partners and former SEC commissioner, is a “proven leader of common sense regulation.” Since leaving the SEC, Atkins has advocated against excessive market regulation.
“He believes in the promise of robust, innovative capital markets that respond to investor needs and provide the capital to make our economy the best in the world. We also recognize that it is essential to making America greater than ever,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The commission oversees U.S. securities markets and investments, and is currently chaired by Gary Gensler, who has led the U.S. government's crackdown on the cryptocurrency industry. Gensler, who was nominated by President Joe Biden, announced last month that he would resign on President Trump's Inauguration Day (January 20, 2025).
Trump, a former crypto skeptic, has promised to make the United States the “crypto capital of the planet” and create a “strategic reserve fund” for Bitcoin. Since his victory, money has flowed into crypto assets. Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency, is currently valued at over $95,000.
Atkins began his career as an attorney and has worked for many years in both the government and private financial markets sectors. In the 1990s, he served on the staffs of two former SEC chairmen, Richard C. Breeden and Arthur Levitt.
His work as SEC commissioner began in 2002. At the time, criticism of Wall Street and its government regulators was growing in the wake of the Enron and WorldCom corporate scandals.
During his tenure, Atkins was widely considered the SEC's most conservative member and was known for his strong free-market orientation. As a commissioner, he called for greater transparency and analysis of the costs and benefits of new SEC rules.
He also emphasized investor education and increased enforcement against those who steal from investors over the internet, manipulate markets, and engage in Ponzi schemes and other types of fraud.
Atkins also opposed harsh penalties for companies accused of wrongdoing, arguing that they do not deter crime. In the summer of 2006, he caused controversy when he said that granting stock options to executives before news that would definitely cause stock prices to rise was not considered insider trading.
Mr. Atkins already has experience working for Mr. Trump. During the Trump administration's first term, Atkins was a member of the President's Strategy and Policy Forum. The forum is an advisory group of more than a dozen CEOs and business leaders who provide input on how to create jobs and accelerate economic growth.
In 2017, Atkins joined the cryptocurrency advocacy group Token Alliance.
Crypto industry insiders welcomed Trump's victory in hopes of pushing through long-sought legislative and regulatory changes.
Trump himself has launched a new business, World Liberty Financial, to trade cryptocurrencies with his family.
