Can Gary Gensler solve every problem in American finance?

The lofty aims of the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission

Gary Gensler, chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), at the SEC headquarters office in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Thursday, July 22, 2021. In his first extensive interview about the digital money craze, Gensler signaled that his deep interest in the subject doesn't mean he's simpatico with the hands-off oversight approach that many enthusiasts would like to see. Photographer: Melissa Lyttle/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Oct 26th 2022|Washington, DC

Everyone in finance has an opinion of Gary Gensler. To many, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (sec), America’s main financial regulator, is meddlesome and overreaching. Mention him in crypto circles and you invite a convoluted description of a token or project, followed by the speaker hissing: “How can that be a security?!” His plans have raised the eyebrows of other policymakers, alarmed lobbyists in Washington and panicked much of Wall Street. One bank boss sneers that his agenda is ridiculous. So broad are his aims, “he must think he is an Avenger,” assuming he can “swoop in and fix every problem in finance.”

This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “Super-regulator”