I know, I know. Everyone wants the various bitcoin ETFs to get approve so they get rich. Hell, I want to get rich too. But I know there is still a minority of folks who care about the future of bitcoin and its true meaning in that future.
We're all hanging on the SEC's every word -- investors, media pundits, etc. We think they are some kind of ultimate judge on the legitimacy of bitcoin -- when that's far from the truth. Bitcoin will get along fine without a peep from the SEC.
The SEC has been slow or completely negligent on outright scams. They took too long to catch up to the ICO scams of yester-year, even when crypto enthusiasts were screaming that the SEC needed to help with the fraud. Then they jaunt into 2018 with a hammer for ICOs and have the audacity to create the fake Howey Coin, as if the many ripped off users from 2017 needed any more slap in the face. I'm not sure that the tax payer's money was well spent on such a stunt. They were a bit late on that meme -- the damage had already been done. They were not ahead of the game with their sarcasm.
Outside of Crypto -- they suck with their specialty: stocks, commodities.
People don't usually think of the 2008 recession as part of the SEC's negligence. As you can gather from the film "The Big Short," no regulators caught that banks like Lehman Brothers' stocks were built around mortgage-backed derivatives. Lehman put their "high quality" stamps of approval on junk bonds, made money, and their stocks soared.
The regulators took no action to investigate outright fraudulent business practices behind a business, no matter the sector. When the gig was up, banks went under, executives got a slap on the wrist, and share holders were shit out of luck. So much for the SEC protecting investors on that one...
They let a web of fraud continue unabated until one of the longest recessions in history occurred. The outright negligence and greed of all financial regulators in 2008 will leave a lasting, perhaps permanent skepticism in the government. Perfect timing!
Now about the commodities. Even a chairperson on the SEC, who dissented against the bitcoin rejected, said that there were already "rumors" that the gold/precious metals markets were manipulated. You think? This is fairly common knowledge to most traders, but even for an SEC chairperson to publicly acknowledge these rumors is a pretty strong confirmation to me. Read her letter here:
https://www.sec.gov/news/public-statement/peirce-dissent-34-83723
So that the SEC let metals get so obviously rigged should concern bitcoin owners, since bitcoin is very much like a commodity. You should ponder the implications of SEC approval and the history they have had with commodities and staples.
Last Word
All this to say, that the SEC has a poor track record in protecting consumers. They often can't see forest for the trees, in my opinion. Or perhaps, if you prefer the tin-foil hat variety of explanations, there are most likely outside interests who have power over what should be an otherwise objective agency.
Additionally, if the wave gathers where consumers want in, and I mean a lot of consumers, it won't matter if the SEC has all their middle fingers raised at them. They will buy bitcoin. Public trust in government is at an all-time low and I very much doubt the public heeds regulators' warnings as strictly as decades past.
The SEC can stand still, but they better be ready to get out of the way. Bitcoin don't give a fuck.
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