MIAMI (Reuters) – Top enforcement officials at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Wednesday said the agencies will continue to police for market misconduct, remarks that arrive as the Trump administration seeks to remake Washington and enforcement.
Both market regulators have already undergone dramatic policy changes since Republicans took the helm at the agencies in late January, including a policy overhaul on cryptocurrency at the SEC, while the CFTC has reorganized its enforcement division.
“You can expect to see some changes based on priorities and the different policies we may pursue,” Antonia Apps, acting deputy enforcement director at the SEC, said at an American Bar Association event in Miami. “But we are going to move forward with the core enforcement agenda we have always moved forward with.”
They spoke at a conference about government enforcement of white-collar crime at which officials from the Justice Department dropped out of speaking in the days leading up to the event amid changes across the government and upheaval at the DOJ specifically.
Both Apps and CFTC enforcement director Brian Young voiced support for enforcement staff at the agencies. Staff at both agencies and across the federal government have been facing mass firings and other cuts as the Trump administration and special adviser Elon Musk seek to remake the federal workforce.
In addition to doing great work, CFTC enforcement staff are “really good people,” Young said.
“I think the taxpayers should be indebted to what they do for us every day,” he said.
Young said the agency’s new focus in enforcement translates to a focus on cases where there is a “good chance” of returning money to victims of fraud or manipulation schemes.
On crypto, the SEC has overhauled its tack, dropping or pausing active litigation as well as investigations.
When asked about the future of crypto enforcement at the agency, Apps said the regulator will continue to look at enforcement in crypto where it sees fraud and has jurisdiction.
“We are not walking away,” she said.
(Reporting by Chris Prentice, Karen Freifeld and Luc Cohen; Editing by Marguerita Choy)
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