The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is hiring another 20-enforcement officers for the unit that protects investors from %Cryptocurrency scams and %Cybersecurity threats.
Those additions bring to 50 the number of SEC staff who are dedicated to probing securities law violations in areas such as digital coin offerings, non-fungible tokens (%NFTs) and decentralized finance (%DeFi).
Since 2017, the SEC’s cyber unit has brought more than 80 enforcement actions for fraudulent and unregistered offerings involving scams that have totaled more than $2 billion U.S.
SEC head Gary Gensler has cryptocurrency exchanges for not registering with regulators when they offer digital coins and tokens. Last September he said the new area of responsibility would require “a lot more people” at the agency.
Recent SEC proposals have indicated the securities regulator could extend enforcement action to decentralized finance, offering new regulatory risks for cryptocurrency projects in the country. There are also reports that the agency is looking into whether NFTs should fall under its responsibility.
The SEC polices digital securities in the U.S., as well as people who advise or broker trades in cryptocurrencies. The SEC says its enforcement actions in conventional markets result in hundreds of millions of dollars being returned to wronged investors each year.