J. Christopher Giancarlo, affectionately known as "Crypto Dad," dismissed speculation that he is being considered to replace Gary Gensler as head of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
On Thursday, the former Chair of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) took to X to deny reports he was seeking the agency’s top job.
“I’ve made clear that I’ve already cleaned up an earlier Gary Gensler mess,” he said. “[I] don’t want to have to do it again.”
He also pushed back against rumors he was seeking “some crypto role” within the U.S. Treasury Department, claiming they were “also wrong.”
The buzz around Giancarlo's potential return to a regulatory role comes amidst speculation of a shake-up at the SEC following Donald Trump’s re-election, with Gary Gensler's position as chairman hanging in the balance.
Giancarlo served as a commissioner at the CFTC from June 2014 to April 2019, stepping into the role shortly after Gensler’s departure as CFTC chair.
He earned the nickname "Crypto Dad" as he became a top figure in the crypto community by advocating for crypto innovation during his tenure.
After stepping down from his role, he co-founded the Digital Dollar Project in January 2020, which seeks to promote discussions on the future of “digital monetary innovations.”
Giancarlo has maintained that central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) are not the only path forward, noting that “crypto, CBDCs, stablecoins, and more” is the global future.
President-elect Donald Trump, whose return to the Whitehouse in January marks a significant comeback for the Republican party, has vowed to quash any future CBDC policy.
The crypto community is bracing for the possibility of Gensler’s departure, as Trump has also promised to replace the current SEC chair, whose term runs until 2026.
Giancarlo is not the only name being floated; other pro-crypto candidates include SEC Commissioners Hester Peirce and Mark Uyeda, former Binance.US CEO Brian Brooks, and others.
Gensler, a contentious figure in the crypto space, hinted at his possible departure during a speech at the 56th Annual Institute on Securities Regulation on Thursday.
At the end of the speech, he stated, “It’s been a great honor to serve with them, doing the people’s work, and ensuring that our capital markets remain the best in the world,” referring to his SEC colleagues.
The pressure on Gensler is at an all-time high this week as 18 states, along with the DeFi Education Fund, filed a lawsuit accusing the SEC of overreaching its authority on crypto regulations.
Filed Thursday, the suit alleges that under Gensler's leadership, the SEC deliberately bypassed standard procedures and withheld new crypto rules to pursue a "regulatory land grab."
Edited by Sebastian Sinclair