This month, a federal judge in the United States granted a 60-day stay order in a case brought against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) by 18 largely Republican state attorneys general.
Launched last year, the lawsuit aimed to correct what the plaintiffs viewed as "gross government overreach" against the crypto industry under the previous tenure of former SEC chair Gary Gensler.
Gensler’s “regulation by enforcement” era was marked by a string of high-profile lawsuits against crypto firms such as Coinbase and Ripple.
According to Cornerstone Research, enforcement actions against crypto firms surged by 80% under Gensler's administration, resulting in fines over $6 billion.
However, President Donald Trump’s appointment of crypto-friendly leadership at the SEC, has shifted the legal landscape for crypto firms. The regulator recently dropped investigations and lawsuits against OpenSea , Kraken, and Coinbase, among other firms.
“[D]ue to a leadership transition in the Securities and Exchange Commission, this case could potentially be resolved,” said U.S. District Judge Gregory Van Tatenhove, noting that a status report was due in 30 days. The lawsuit was filed by the DeFi Education Fund along with 18 attorneys general from Kentucky, Nebraska, Tennessee, West Virginia, Iowa, Texas, Mississippi, Montana, Arkansas, Ohio, Kansas, Missouri, Indiana, Utah, Louisiana, South Carolina, Oklahoma, and Florida.
Gensler, who resigned in January, now teaches at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
His successor, Paul Atkins — a Trump nominee — was recently confirmed as SEC chair in a 52-44 vote, with the majority of Democrats against his appointment.
In a letter , Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren pointed to Atkins’ deep ties to the crypto industry, including his role as a board advisor to the Digital Chamber, a major crypto lobbying group. She also highlighted his firm Patomak Global Partners’ decision to take on the now-defunct exchange FTX as a client. Warren urged Atkins to commit to recusing himself from SEC lobbying after his term ends.
