Gary Gensler Named as Joe Biden's SEC Chair Pick

The former CFTC chairman has taught courses about blockchain at MIT.

AccessTimeIconJan 18, 2021 at 3:16 p.m. UTC
Updated Sep 14, 2021 at 10:57 a.m. UTC
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President-elect Joe Biden named Gary Gensler as his pick for chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Monday.

  • Gensler is the former chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and a Wall Street veteran who has closely studied the cryptocurrency field.
  • Gensler has also been a part of Biden's transition team, overseeing financial policy work.
  • Former SEC Chairman Jay Clayton left the role on Dec. 23. Elad Roisman was appointed acting SEC chairman by outgoing President Donald Trump for the remainder of his administration.
  • Also on Monday, the Biden administration announced Rohit Chopra as the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Chopra currently holds the commissioner position at the Federal Trade Commission.
  • Chopra has publicly criticized libra, the Facebook-led cryptocurrency project that has since been renamed diem.

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