The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which oversees US stock market activity, announced an increase in its number of employees to combat fraudulent activities in the cryptocurrency sector.
The SEC will fill 20 new positions in the department, renamed the Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit, bringing the total staff to 50.
SEC chairman, Gary Gensler, said in a statement,
"By nearly doubling the size of this crucial service, the SEC will be better equipped to monitor crime in the cryptocurrency market while continuing to identify transparency and oversight issues related to cybersecurity."
The SEC experts will focus on crimes related to cryptocurrency offerings, exchange platforms, stablecoins (stablecoins, cryptocurrencies whose price is linked to another currency, financial product or asset, in such a way that its price is stable), or even non-fungible tokens (NFTs, digital certificates of authenticity that are supposed to be tamper-proof).
Many trading platforms are based outside the United States, outside the direct control of its federal authorities.
Since taking the reins of the SEC in April 2021, Gensler has insisted on his desire to strengthen the regulation of the cryptocurrency market, considering that the same laws should apply there as in other financial markets.
" Let's not risk undermining ninety years of financial asset laws by creating regulatory arbitrage or leaving loopholes, " he warned in early April.