Hester Peirce calls crypto self-custody a very fundamental right

SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce called crypto self-custody a “very fundamental American right.” Peirce said people should be free to hold assets themselves or use intermediaries. Peirce said regulators should preserve the right to self-custody and use decentralized tools. She said regulators should apply different rules to financial intermediaries. On Sunday, Peirce criticized rules that restrict ordinary Americans from investing in businesses and crypto projects while allowing them to gamble freely. Peirce argued that regulators should protect investors without infantilizing them. In an interview with Scott Melker, Peirce said regulators should make it easier for entrepreneurs to raise capital. Peirce said investors should be free to decide where they put their money. She contrasted restrictions on investing with the ability to spend the same money at a casino. Peirce outlined a simplified startup exemption that would let crypto projects raise up to $5 million. Her other approach would let projects raise up to $75 million under stricter requirements. The framework could also allow a token to separate eventually from the investment contract used for its initial sale after the project completes its promised work. Projects claiming their tokens had no utility could face fewer regulatory hurdles than projects trying to build useful products. Peirce said the SEC innovation exemption could allow tokenized stocks to trade through automated market makers on permissionless blockchains. Tokenized securities would retain the same rights as underlying shares, including voting and dividends. Issuers could object to tokenization. Peirce said the U.S. should encourage this experimentation rather than push it overseas. Peirce said the SEC can still address several crypto issues under its existing authority despite the CLARITY Act’s failure.