Gary Gensler is likely headed for the exit, and possible replacements for the Securities and Exchange Commission chairman are being floated by Trump’s transition team.
While Trump in July promised to fire Gensler on day one of his second administration, he technically can’t remove Gensler (without cause) until his term ends in 2026. But at the center of the president-elect’s focus for hiring a new SEC chief is the issue of cryptocurrency.
Among the people that some are speculating could take Gensler’s place is Dan Gallagher, Reuters reported. He previously worked as an SEC commissioner and is currently the chief legal, compliance and corporate affairs officer of Robinhood Markets. Gallagher has criticized Gensler’s SEC and asked for changes to the way the agency approaches crypto regulation.
In September, Gallagher spoke before Congress during a hearing titled “Dazed and Confused: Breaking Down the SEC’s Politicized Approach to Digital Assets.” During his prepared remarks Gallagher called out Gensler and said the SEC has fostered “innovation-killing federal regulatory uncertainty.”
“The SEC has engaged in regulation by enforcement, which is bad for American consumers who want greater access to digital assets. It's bad for the innovation in the blockchain and digital asset industries, and it is bad for the already eroding and competitive position of the U.S. with regard to digital asset markets,” he said during the hearing.
Robinhood did not immediately respond to Fortune’s request for comment.
According to Reuters, another possible candidate to take the reins of the SEC is Paul Atkins, who was a part of Trump’s 2016 transition team and also previously served as an SEC commissioner. He is currently the CEO of consultancy Patomak Global Partners.
Since 2017, Atkins has served as a co-chair of the Token Alliance, which is an initiative of the Chamber of Digital Commerce. The chamber is dedicated to promoting the “the acceptance and use of digital assets and blockchain-based technologies,” according to its website.
During an interview with crypto media outlet CoinDesk in 2022, Atkins said he agreed with the SEC and Gensler’s position that Bitcoin is not a security but also criticized Gensler’s approach of regulating crypto.
“The way the SEC is doing this, as regulation through enforcement, or threatening to, is a real problem,” he said.
Patomak Global Partners did not immediately respond to Fortune’s request for comment.
Other reports have flagged names like Mark Uyeda, who started a second term as an SEC commissioner in January. Uyeda has been a commissioner since 2022 when he was nominated by President Biden.
He also has worked in several roles at the agency, including as senior adviser to former SEC Chairman Jay Clayton and counsel to Atkins when he was a commissioner in the early 2000s.
Uyeda has been critical of the SEC’s approach to crypto as well. In an October interview with Fox Business, he called the agency’s crypto policies a “disaster,” adding that it had done nothing to clarify crypto rules.
He also advocated for change at the top of the SEC to reform its agenda on crypto in a Fox Business interview this week.
"The Commission’s war on crypto must end, including crypto enforcement actions solely based on a failure to register with no allegation of fraud or harm," he said during the interview. "President Trump and the American electorate have sent a clear message. Starting in 2025, the SEC’s role is to carry out that mandate."
Trump-Vance Transition spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in a statement to Fortune that no decision has been made on Trump’s appointees
Although during his first term as president in 2019 Trump declared he was “not a fan” of cryptocurrency and said digital currencies are “not money,” he has changed his mind since then.
Trump actively embraced crypto during his 2024 presidential campaign, and has also gotten in on the action first-hand, launching his own NFT projects that reportedly netted him millions of dollars worth of cryptocurrency and licensing fees.
Meanwhile, Gensler has been successful in reaching giant settlements with some crypto companies, including the landmark $4.5 billion deal with Terraform Labs and its cofounder Do Kwon in June.
Yet, many crypto industry leaders have faulted the SEC chairman’s approach, criticizing the agency for not providing clear guidance on crypto and filing lawsuits against companies that have strived to comply with SEC rules.
In October, Gensler hinted that he may be willing to step aside.
"Democracies have consequences, but we're going to continue to do that which we do well at the SEC until, as I say, the ref calls the whistle," the SEC chairman said during a Las Vegas financial technology convention, Reuters reported. "Traditionally, presidents decide who chairs the SEC. That's a good part of democracy."
