High-profile crypto startup blow-ups like FTX or the Celsius Network may be embarrassing for investment firms dabbling in the space—but Gary Gensler’s reaction to the mayhem could be just as damaging to the sector.
Gensler, the Securities and Exchange Commission Chair, has been on a media blitz since last Thursday, getting on CNBC’s Squawk Box or Bloomberg TV to talk about the SEC’s recent enforcement action against Kraken, the crypto exchange and trading company that was last valued at more than $10 billion at the beginning of 2022, per PitchBook. Gensler suggested that “the runway is getting shorter” for crypto companies to register with the SEC, and he even posted a video to his Twitter profile, explaining how staking, which has become an increasingly important part of the crypto ecosystem, works, and where it could harm investors. (Naturally, Gensler used steak, as in the red meat, to explain it.)
