SEC’s Gensler Signals Extra Scrutiny for Proof-of-Stake Cryptocurrencies: Report

Speaking after the Merge (but not specifically about Ethereum), SEC Chair Gary Gensler said proof-of-stake cryptos could be investment contracts that subject them to securities regulations.

By Danny Nelson

Sep 15, 2022 at 7:42 p.m. UTC

Updated Sep 19, 2022 at 4:13 p.m. UTC

Danny Nelson

Danny is CoinDesk's deputy business editor. He owns BTC, ETH and SOL.

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U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler on Thursday said that staked cryptocurrencies may be subject to federal securities regulations, repeating a pro-oversight stance in the wake of Ethereum’s transition to just such a method.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Gensler said that proof-of-stake (PoS) blockchains, which generate new coins for inventors who pool their holdings, take on investment contract-like attributes that could bring them under his agency’s purview. He said he wasn’t talking about a specific coin, according to the Journal.

Still, the comments, which came hours after Ethereum completed its PoS transition via the Merge, indicate that the milestone tech upgrade may carry greater ramifications for the second-most popular blockchain than simply cutting its energy usage. As a proof-of-work chain, its native ether token was one of only two cryptos – the other being bitcoin – clearly defined as commodities by federal regulators.

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