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With Bitcoin ETF Decision Looming, SEC Chair Gensler Says (Again) That Crypto Is Dangerous
While the industry eagerly awaits the U.S. regulator's decision on spot bitcoin ETFs, Gary Gensler is on X warning investors that crypto is rife with scams.
Updated Mar 8, 2024, 7:30 p.m. Published Jan 8, 2024, 4:36 p.m.
The entire crypto world and much of the U.S. financial sector is anxiously awaiting word from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on whether it will approve a spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). SEC Chair Gary Gensler has chosen this moment to issue a broad warning about the hazards to investors of getting into digital assets.
Gensler – as he's done many times – posted on X to warn people that the crypto sector is beset by scams and fraud, and that many companies in the space aren't following securities laws.
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"Those offering crypto asset investments/services may not be complying w/ applicable law, including federal securities laws," Gensler posted, advising his followers that there are a number of things to keep in mind about cryptocurrencies. "Fraudsters continue to exploit the rising popularity of crypto assets to lure retail investors into scams," he added in another post.
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It's unclear whether Gensler's words represent a final dig before the agency – as many expect – approves ETF applications that are approaching key deadlines. That moment is widely seen as a major turning point, because fully regulated spot ETFs would allow much easier trading of digital assets for even the most casual investor, and some estimates suggest that could mean tens of billions of dollars flowing into the industry.
Of course, whether or not cryptocurrency businesses are properly approaching securities law is a matter still being worked out in a long list of court cases. Gensler's agency has been found by some judges to be on the wrong side of the argument, though the SEC has also chalked up a few wins, including a recent ruling in the Terraform Labs case that the regulator was right about the company improperly pushing unregistered crypto securities.
Read More: SEC Chair Gary Gensler: 'Far Too Many Frauds and Bankruptcies'
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What to know:
- As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M.
- GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month.
- Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B.
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Federal Reserve moves toward narrower, crypto-driven take on master accounts
The U.S. central bank has been mulling the idea of a "skinny" version of master accounts for firms that want payments access without the deeper Fed demands.
What to know:
- The U.S. Federal Reserve has issued a request for information that gets the ball rolling on a new kind of payment account that may benefit crypto firms that want access to Fed payment rails without too many regulatory requirements.
- The central bank will accept thoughts from the public for 45 days.
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