Navigating the Future Leadership of the CFTC

With Paul Atkins as the incoming SEC Chair, David Sacks as the AI & Crypto Czar, and potential CFTC leadership changes, the Trump administration is signaling a major shift for crypto, AI, and financial regulation. 

Guests Mike Selig and Jake Chervinsky break down what this means for token launches, enforcement actions, inter-agency collaboration, and the fate of Operation Chokepoint 2.0. Could this mark the end of the U.S.’s regulatory hostility toward innovation?

Show highlights:

• 02:18-What changes to expect under an Atkins-led SEC
• 08:58-Who could lead the SEC in the period between Gensler resigning and Atkins assuming
• 11:54-Whether the Democrats will nominate SEC Commissioner Crenshaw again
• 15:50-Elizabeth Warren's influence on the non-Republican SEC commissioner picks
• 23:39-Whether Atkins’ leadership at the SEC might shift crypto regulation away from aggressive enforcement
• 28:26-Whether Gensler’s recent promotion of people in enforcement roles will further his SEC’s regulation-by-enforcement strategy
• 38:52-Whether the SEC and Coinbase will reach a settlement
• 41:47-Why Mike and Jake think it’s not likely that the SEC will pursue litigation in the Ripple case
• 46:03-How the SEC might clarify securities laws around token sales, airdrops, and exemptions
• 55:14-Whether Atkins’ leadership could fast-track Hester Peirce’s Safe Harbor
• 59:53-How the CFTC's potential lead on crypto regulation might redefine how it splits duties with the SEC
• 1:03:03-Whether it even makes sense to have two financial regulatory agencies
• 1:11:00-Who might lead the CFTC 
• 1:13:59-Why Jake and Mike believe combining AI and crypto under one ‘czar’ makes sense
• 1:20:31-How the appointment of Scott Bessent for Treasury secretary will affect the crypto industry
• 1:25:47-How the likely end to Operation Chokepoint 2.0 will create a “sea change”

Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com

Thank you to our sponsors!

• Polkadot
• Robinhood & Arbitrum
• Kelp DAO

Guests:

• Mike Selig, Partner at Willkie Farr & Gallagher 
• Previous appearance on Unchained: Is Gary Gensler on a Mission to Put Crypto Down for Good?
• Jake Chervinsky, Chief Legal Officer at Variant
• Previous appearances on Unchained:
• The US vs. Crypto: Jake Chervinsky on Crypto's Legal and Regulatory Status
• Why the SEC vs. Ripple Order Is Now About 2 Things: Coinbase and Congress
• The Chopping Block: Jake Chervinsky on How the SEC Has Lost Credibility
• All Things Crypto Regulation With Jake Chervinsky
• Everything You Need to Know About the Looming Battle Over Privacy in Crypto
• Can Crypto Be a Force in the Midterms? Yes, Say Kristin Smith and Jake Chervinsky

Links

• Trump’s Office Picks: 
• Unchained: 
• Why Trump’s SEC Chair Pick, Paul Atkins, Is So Positive for Crypto
• David Sacks as A.I. & Crypto Czar? Why the Industry Was Surprised
• Trump Taps Paul Atkins for Next SEC Chair, Making Good on His Crypto Promises
• Democratic SEC Commissioner Is Stepping Down, but That Doesn’t Mean Trump Will Get 2 Outright Picks 
• Trump Taps Hedge Fund Manager Scott Bessent to Be Treasury Secretary
• A Degen Administration? Why the Crypto Czar May Be Allowed to Own Tokens
• Tracking Trump’s Cabinet and Staff Nominations 
• Congressional Results
• John Reed Stark’s tweet:“current SEC Chair Gary Gensler is quietly working behind the scenes to lead the SEC from the grave”

Operation Chokepoint 2.0

• Forbes: How ‘Debanking’ Tech And Crypto Companies Could Kill Businesses
• Marc Andreessen and the CFPB: Debunking the Debanking Debunkers by Nic Carter
• Unchained: Regulators Are Limiting Banks Serving Crypto Clients. Does That Violate the Law? 
• Unchained: Killed By Politics, Ex-Diem Boss Says of Meta’s Stablecoin

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