US SEC to Hire More Experts to Fight Cryptocurrency Frauds

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is adding 20 more positions to its enforcement unit for crypto markets and cyber-related threats. The division will be renamed to ‘Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit’ and will have a total of 50 dedicated employees. SEC Hiring 20 New Employees to Combat Crimes In a recent statement, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced the doubling of its cryptocurrency enforcement division to add another 20 positions to the ‘Cyber Unit’. “By nearly doubling the size of this key unit, the SEC will be better equipped to police wrongdoing in the crypto markets while continuing to identify disclosure and control issues with respect to cybersecurity,” Gensler said in his statement. The focus of the unit will go towards preventing frauds related to crypto asset offerings, crypto asset exchanges, crypto asset lending and staking products, decentralized finance platforms, non-fungible tokens and stablecoins. Scammers Stole $14 Billion in Crypto in 2021 Founded in 2017 within the SEC’s enforcement division, the Cyber Unit has since brought more than 80 enforcement actions related to fraudulent and unregistered crypto asset offerings and platforms, resulting in monetary relief totalling over $2 billion. Meanwhile, cryptocurrency crimes had a record-breaking year in 2021, with scammers taking $14 billion worth of crypto. That’s nearly twice the $7.8 billion taken by scammers in 2020, accordi...