Crypto Industry Hails Supreme Court’s Chevron Decision

The crypto community is celebrating the US Supreme Court’s decision to overturn the Chevron doctrine, a 40-year-old principle that defers to federal agencies’ interpretation of the law.

Crypto stakeholders noted that the Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision ended a precedent that had unjustly empowered unelected agencies like the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Over the years, the SEC has often been criticized for its stringent interpretation of the law against the emerging industry.

Mike Cagney, co-founder and CEO of Figure Markets, highlighted the ruling’s significance for the crypto sector. He stated that the decision shifts enforcement from regulators to the courts.

“Previously, when there wasn’t clear legislation, courts had to side with the regulator (e.g., the SEC). With this decision, courts decide autonomously. Big for our space,” Cagney added.

Austin Campbell, an adjunct professor at Columbia Business School, said the ruling forces the SEC to follow clear written rules. He remarked that “this decision will have some unintended consequences and likely puts the onus back on Congress, but in the long run, it’s a huge net positive for judicial and legal certainty in our industry.”

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Similarly, economist Timothy Peterson chimed that the decision will prevent the SEC from acting as an “automatic subject matter expert” on crypto.

“[The Supreme Court] overturning Chevron deference limits the SEC’s unilateral interpretive power against Bitcoin. All those ‘staff opinions’ that said “such and such is a security”? Gone. Courts must now scrutinize the SEC’s anti-Bitcoin stance, potentially leading to fairer regulations and a more balanced legal environment​,” Peterson noted.

Meanwhile, FOX Business reporter Eleanor Terrett explained that the ruling doesn’t entirely remove the SEC’s enforcement abilities. However, she noted that it raises questions about whether Congress has authorized the SEC to regulate crypto as a security.

“The SEC’s claim that it has full jurisdiction over crypto matters less today than it did yesterday because there is a question over whether Congress has given the SEC authority to regulate it based on whether or not it’s a security,” Terrett stated.

Republican lawmaker Warren Davidson corroborated Terrett’s view. He noted that the “decision does not prevent a delegation of power for rulemaking by Congress. [However, it] does prevent rulemaking where no delegation was made.”

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Despite broad support, President Joe Biden’s administration and key Democrats, like Elizabeth Warren, have criticized the ruling. Warren, a known crypto skeptic, called it a power grab by the far-right to benefit the wealthy and well-connected.

“Corporate interests want extremist judges to write the rules at the expense of consumers, workers, safety, and the environment,” she said.