Paul Atkins Confirmed as SEC Chair: Pro-Crypto Shift Marks Departure from Gensler Era
Paul Atkins, President Trump’s choice to head the SEC, was officially confirmed by the full Senate on Wednesday evening, with the vote largely split along party lines. All 52 Republicans supported Atkins, a pro-crypto SEC veteran who has prioritized reforming the agency’s approach to digital assets. In contrast, 44 Democrats voted against his confirmation.
Paul Atkins takes over from former SEC Chair Gary Gensler, who, under President Biden, drew heavy criticism from the crypto industry by launching lawsuits or investigations against nearly every major firm in the space over alleged securities law violations. Under Atkins’ leadership, the SEC has already issued guidance effectively exempting meme coins, crypto mining, and stablecoins from securities regulation.
Currently, the SEC is operating with only three commissioners—Uyeda, Peirce, and Democratic commissioner Caroline Crenshaw—falling short of its full five-member structure.
Crenshaw was a strong backer of Gensler’s enforcement actions against crypto companies during the Biden era. However, after a wave of backlash from the industry in December, Senate Democrats ultimately dropped plans to renominate her.
SEC regulations mandate that no more than three commissioners from the same political party can serve simultaneously to “ensure that the Commission remains non-partisan.”
Ordinarily, this would mean Trump is expected to nominate two Democrats to fill the remaining seats.
But the president has recently signaled a willingness to defy long-standing Washington traditions.
Just last month, he dismissed two Democrats from the Federal Trade Commission and another from the National Labor Relations Board.
Until now, commissioners at independent agencies like the SEC have been shielded from dismissal without cause by a key Supreme Court precedent from the 1930s. Legal experts suggest Trump may be attempting to challenge and overturn that precedent, especially with the current conservative-leaning Supreme Court. Lawsuits on this issue have already been filed.
