Hester Peirce won’t be leaving the SEC anytime soon

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Hester Peirce, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) commissioner known for her digital currency-friendly stance, has been sworn in for her second term in office. Peirce, better known as ‘Crypto Mom,’ will be in office for the next five years.

Peirce secured a second term in office earlier this month after she was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate. She had been nominated for a second term in office by President Donald Trump in June. She will now serve as one of the five SEC commissioners until June 5, 2025.

Pierce was sworn in alongside Caroline Crenshaw, a captain in the U.S. Army Reserve and an experienced lawyer who has been serving in various roles in the SEC since 2013.

Pierce commented, “I am honored to be able to continue to serve our investors and protect the integrity and efficacy of our markets together with the SEC staff and my fellow commissioners, including my newest colleague, Commissioner Crenshaw.”

Pierce has been a fierce advocate for the digital currency industry, endearing her to millions across the world. She has criticized the SEC’s stand on some issues, including its objection to a policy change that would have paved the way for the first digital currency exchange traded fund (ETF). At the time, she claimed that the SEC’s stand sent “a strong signal that innovation is unwelcome in our markets, a signal that may have effects far beyond the fate of bitcoin ETPs.” This was the genesis of her moniker ‘Crypto Mom,’ with the digital currency industry quick to praise her for standing up to the watchdog.

During her time at the SEC, she has relentlessly advocated for policy changes that will attract the institutional investors into the digital currency industry. As she stated earlier this year, this will lead to “more robust protections for retail investors, better custody solutions for bitcoin, and to more effective surveillance for market manipulation and other fraudulent activity.”

The SEC chair Jay Clayton congratulated Pierce on her swearing in, stating, “Hester has been a tremendous advocate for our markets and investors, and I know she will continue to be a strong voice for them in the years to come.”