Cato Podcast SEC Commissioner Challenges Financial Surveillance
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Sep 23, 2025 
Hester Peirce, SEC Commissioner since 2018, shares her insights on the erosion of financial privacy in America. She criticizes tools like the Consolidated Audit Trail for compromising constitutional rights while advocating for principles-based regulation that promotes innovation. Peirce explores how emerging technologies can empower individuals to regain control over their financial data, challenging the oppressive nature of current financial surveillance. The conversation also delves into balancing market-driven innovation against regulatory frameworks.
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Financial Privacy Is Being Eroded
- Hester Peirce warns that financial privacy has been eroded by norms like the third-party doctrine.
- New crypto and cryptographic tools could help reassert individual control over financial data.
Privacy Tools Can Coexist With Security
- Peirce argues privacy-protecting cryptography need not be outlawed despite security concerns.
- Historical acceptance of private encryption shows privacy tools can coexist with national security.
CAT Changed My View On Surveillance
- The Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT) shifted Peirce from tentative support to concern about surveillance.
- Even with PII removed, she fears the database's size and access pose constitutional risks.