Ex-SEC acting chair: Agency dropped crypto cases to avoid issues with credibility
Summary
Mark Uyeda said the SEC dropped several civil cases against crypto companies in early 2025 because the agency was preparing a major shift in crypto rulemaking. He said continuing to argue those cases in court would have hurt the SEC’s credibility if its official policy was about to change “180 degrees” from the prior administration’s position. Uyeda said some of the cases were also “justifiable under law,” but the agency chose to end them to avoid conflicting legal stances. The dropped cases included actions against Kraken, Ripple Labs and Coinbase. Uyeda served as acting SEC chair from January to April 2025 and now serves alongside Paul Atkins and Hester Peirce.
