SEC Chairman calls Bitcoin a commodity

What

The Chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Gary Gensler said that Bitcoin is the only cryptocurrency he was prepared to label a commodity

Why

The comment comes from an interview on CNBC’s Squawk Box where the chairman discussed the implications of labelling cryptocurrencies as commodities rather than securities

What next

Speaking to CNBC’s Jim Cramer, Gensler addressed his earlier calls to introduce more regulatory clarity to the crypto market

The story

In an interview with CNBC’s Jim Cramer, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler said that Bitcoin was the only cryptocurrency he was prepared to publicly label a commodity  (a raw material usually traded globally that is interchangeable with others of the same type). Commodities are often used by investors as a way to diversify their portfolios.

Discussing the implications of such a label, Gensler said that all of the main market regulators in the US agreed that cryptocurrencies were a highly speculative asset class and “some like Bitcoin” are commodities. 

However, the chairman was careful when choosing his words to avoid hinting at any other tokens or revealing potential moves from the SEC.

Gensler then went on to call for full and fair disclosures in the crypto market, saying that the US adding that the US is open to having hundreds, if not thousands of tokens on its market if they complied with SEC laws.

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