Enforcement during Gensler administration was considerably higher than during the previous administration.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) brought 33 cryptocurrency-related enforcement actions in 2024, the last year of the Chair Gary Gensler’s administration, according to a Cornerstone Research report released today. This number is 30% lower than the high reached in 2023 and marks the first year-over-year decline since 2021.
The report, SEC Cryptocurrency Enforcement: 2024 Update, found that, of the 33 enforcement actions, half were brought in September and October, ahead of the presidential election in early November. The SEC brought 25 litigations in U.S. district courts and eight administrative proceedings in 2024. Compared to 2023, the number of litigations slightly decreased, while administrative proceedings declined by more than 50%. Monetary penalties imposed reached a record high of $4.98 billion, largely attributable to one multi-billion-dollar settlement.
We will be watching how enforcement may change in 2025, in light of the SEC’s recently announced crypto task force.”
“The SEC has continued to focus on its implementation of the Howey test,” said Abe Chernin, a Cornerstone Research vice president and cohead of the firm’s FinTech practice. “In 2024, the SEC also concentrated on enforcement actions alleging market manipulation or failures to register as a broker-dealer.”
The report also compares the Gensler administration to that of Jay Clayton, the SEC chair during the first Trump administration (May 4, 2017–December 23, 2020). Under Chair Gensler (April 17, 2021–December 31, 2024), the SEC initiated 125 cryptocurrency-related enforcement actions, compared to 70 under Chair Clayton. Of those, Chair Gensler resolved 98 while Chair Clayton resolved 50. The Gensler administration imposed $6.05 billion in monetary penalties, nearly four times the $1.52 billion imposed under Chair Clayton.
“Despite the drop in number of enforcement actions in 2024, cryptocurrency remained a top priority during Chair Gensler’s final year,” said Simona Mola, the report’s author and a principal at Cornerstone Research. “Since 2018, cryptocurrency has represented, on average, approximately 6% of the SEC’s overall enforcement efforts in terms of actions initiated. We will be watching how enforcement may change in 2025, in light of the SEC’s recently announced crypto task force.”
The analysis further found that 66% of all enforcement actions brought under Chair Gensler contained allegations of fraud, compared to 54% of actions brought under Chair Clayton. Conversely, 71% of Clayton administration actions contained unregistered securities offering violations, compared to 63% during the Gensler administration.