The US Security & Exchange Commission has been working for months on creating regulation to control the usage of Bitcoin (BTC) -0.05% and other cryptos, in a bid to protect consumers and shrink the use of cryptocurrencies for money laundering and illegal dealings.
Through their efforts, the SEC have stepped on many toes and contempt for the time its taking the Commission to come up with workable rules has garnered criticism for the current chairman Gary Gensler.
The amount of Bitcoin ETFs still awaiting approval from the watchdog is seen as ridiculous and has added to the disapproval of Gensler. Some believe the steps taken have gone too far, with Coinbase (COIN) +0.78% chief Brian Armstrong calling the SEC out for what he believes to be sketchy behaviour.
Ray Dalio, the founder of Bridgewater Associates has now joined in, when he told attendees of the SALT conference that he believes the government will try to shut cryptocurrency down if it becomes a threat to the US Dollar.
“I think at the end of the day if it’s really successful … they will try to kill it,” he says. “And I think they will kill it because they have ways of killing it,” (Business Insider, 2021). The US regulator has announced their aim to increase oversight on the crypto market, coining Dalio’s comments.
As cryptocurrencies continue to gain momentum and using crypto is becoming easier through more retail and institutional investors participating, the market has boomed $2 trillion this year.
Gary Gensler announced to lawmakers on Tuesday that the SEC is working on rules to support the regulation of the digital-assets market. The volatility of the market creates large risks for investors, whom the SEC aims to protect.
His comments during the SALT conference, which took place in New York between the 13th – 15th of September, were not the first time Dalio raised concern over the handling of crypto by the SEC. Back in March he already stated his fears that the regulator might ban Bitcoin all together if it became too successful.
The hedgefund-billionaire’s fears are yet to become true, as the SEC has not spoken about banning the cryptocurrency yet. Dalio holds a small percentage of Bitcoin but has put most of his hopes in his large Gold -0.61% exposure.
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*Stock prices taken on 16.09.2021 at 10:11.
*Mozee, Carla (15. September 2021). Business Insider: Hedge-fund billionaire Ray Dalio says regulators will ‘kill’ bitcoin if it gets too successful. Last viewed on 16.09.2021 on https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/currencies/ray-dalio-bitcoin-regulation-cryptocurrency-bridgewater-sec-crypto-2021-9.
