SEC launches new office to examine crypto filings

Corporate cryptocurrency assets are about to get more regulatory scrutiny. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is opening a new Office of Crypto Assets to examine crypto-related filings as part of the Division of Corporation Finance’s Disclosure Review Program (DRP).

The move will allow DRP “to better focus its resources and expertise to address the unique and evolving filing-review issues related to crypto assets,” according to a release from the SEC.

The announcement appears to be part of the SEC’s ongoing efforts to increase corporate transparency. Last week, SEC chairman Gary Gensler told a conference of startups and venture capitalists that it was time for crypto to get more regulatory attention to build investor confidence.

“Detroit would not have taken off without some traffic lights and cops on the beat,” he said at the NYC Summit. “This field will not take off unless you have some trust.”

This is not the SEC’s first move to tighten oversight of cryptocurrencies. In May, the agency nearly doubled its crypto investigative and enforcement staff to bolster efforts to find crypto-related violations of securities laws.

Along with the new Crypto Assets Office, the SEC announced the formation of an Office of Industrial Applications and Services that will examine filings by life-sciences companies.

The DRP has seven offices dedicated to examining specific parts of corporate filings, and the new offices will open in the fall, according to the SEC.—DA