Paul Atkins, founder and CEO of Patomak Global Partners LLC, speaks during a Bloomberg Television interview at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California, US, on Monday, May 1, 2017.
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images
President-elect Donald Trump, making good on his promise of a crypto-friendly administration, plans to nominate former SEC Commissioner Paul Atkins to head the agency, according to the publication Truth Social.
Currently the CEO of Patomak Global Partners, Atkins is a well-known veteran of the financial world and specifically Republican political circles. He was widely expected to take the position of the country's top financial market regulator.
If confirmed, Atkins would succeed Gary Gensler, a widely reviled figure in the cryptocurrency community for his numerous efforts to strangle the $3.5 trillion cryptocurrency market. Trump has promised an easier path for Bitcoin and its countless peers, and the market has rallied since his election victory on November 5.
Trump said in a speech: “Paul is a proven leader in the field of common-sense regulation. He believes in the promise of strong, innovative capital markets that respond to the needs of investors and provide the capital to make our economy the best in the world.” statement. “He also recognizes that digital assets and other innovations are essential to making America greater than ever.”
Trump's position on cryptocurrencies reflects his larger pro-deregulation stance that prevailed during his first term.
Atkins served as SEC commissioner from 2002 to 2008, under then-President George W. Bush. Prior to this, he also held other regulatory positions in the Corporate Finance Division.
Besides adopting a pro-crypto stance, the would-be candidate criticized some of the reforms that emerged from the global financial crisis in 2008. Specifically, he criticized the Dodd-Frank legislation as being too burdensome on the banking industry.
