SEC Dropped Crypto Cases Over Credibility Concerns: Former Acting Chair

Mark Uyeda, former acting chair of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), revealed that the agency dropped civil cases against cryptocurrency companies in early 2025 due to concerns over its credibility.

The SEC had filed cases against Kraken, Ripple Labs, Coinbase, and others under the previous administration, which was led by Gary Gensler. However, Uyeda stated that the agency was preparing a '180-degree change' in rulemaking, which would have contradicted the positions argued in court.

'I think that hurts [our] credibility as an agency,' Uyeda said during a panel at the Psaros Center for Financial Markets and Policy's Financial Markets Quality Conference. He added that there were 'significant concerns' about the justifiability of the cases under law.