Gensler tells Congress that cryptocurrencies ‘have been a catalyst for change'

Gary Gensler, the former CFTC chairman nominated to lead President Joe Biden's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), said Tuesday that cryptocurrencies “have been a catalyst for change.”

His remarks followed a question about what Congress and the SEC can do to create “a more forward-thinking” business environment for the crypto space. Gensler’s confirmation hearing before the U.S. Senate is taking place at the time of this report.

Referring to his time teaching at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Gensler said that “these innovations have been a catalyst for change. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have brought new thinking to payments and financial inclusion, but also they’ve also raised new issues of investor protection that we still need to attend to.”

Gensler went on to remark that “if confirmed at the SEC, I’d work with fellow commissioners to both promote the new innovation but also at the core ensure for investor protection.”

He went on to pledge to “[p]romote technology but still stay true to our core values of investor protection and capital formation.”

As previously reported by The Block, Gensler’s nomination brought to the fore an engaged yet skeptical voice on the digital asset front. Gensler has previously raised how cryptocurrencies highlight weaknesses in the U.S. payments infrastructure.

Gensler was officially nominated in mid-January after serving as an advisor to the Biden presidential campaign.