Shalini Nagarajan

<div id="highlights-block_62a9caaa6dbdc" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>FINRA plans to boost resources to better understand and observe cryptocurrencies</li>
 <li>The move aligns with the SEC&#8217;s plans to hire more staff for crypto enforcements</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) is gearing up for more involvement in cryptocurrency after several organization members have shown interest in trading digital assets.



While federal agencies consider market protection measures, FINRA expects to play a role in policing digital asset markets, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/wall-st-watchdog-finra-bulk-up-crypto-capabilities-ceo-says-2022-06-14" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Reuters</a> reported CEO Robert Cook saying at an industry conference on Tuesday.&nbsp;



Cook said FINRA — which regulates registered brokers and broker-dealers in the US — will need to engage with the industry and requires resources to do so. 



FINRA has approved dozens of its members to trade in cryptocurrencies, Cook said. Boosting resources and staff aside, the non-governmental watchdog is exploring whether it can perform cross-market surveillance across blockchains, he added.



Cook even encouraged employees recently laid off by crypto companies to call him. Tumbling crypto prices have triggered layoffs at major crypto exchanges, including <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/coinbase-cut-workforce-ceo-wary-of-potential-recession/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Coinbase</a>, <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/gemini-joins-growing-list-of-crypto-exchanges-cutting-staff-amid-downturn/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Gemini</a>, <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/crypto-com-cutting-5-of-workforce-amid-digital-asset-downturn/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Crypto.com</a>, BitMEX, Buenbit and Bitso. 



Echoing Cook, SEC Chair Gary Gensler called for urgent action to protect crypto investors and other market participants in a video interview on Tuesday, <a href="https://twitter.com/WSJ/status/1536760747526705157" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">citing</a> this week’s account lockouts at Celsius.



Last month, the SEC (which oversees FINRA) <a href="https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2022-78" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">pledged</a> to boost the headcount of its Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit enforcement division from 30 to 50 dedicated positions.



In any case, FINRA’s Cook isn&#8217;t alone in seeking fired blockchain industry employees during one of the space&#8217;s most turbulent periods in years. Crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun said in a Tuesday <a href="https://twitter.com/justinsuntron/status/1536691175423365126" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">tweet</a> that his firms TRON, Poloniex, BitTorrent, USDD, APENFT, JUST Foundation and SunIO are actively hiring.



Binance also <a href="https://twitter.com/cz_binance/status/1537013824666095617" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a> it has 2,000 open position while Kraken flagged its global hiring push in a <a href="https://blog.kraken.com/post/14372/kraken-announces-global-hiring-push-and-commitment-to-crypto-first-culture/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">blog</a>, confirming plans to fill more than 500 positions this year.



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Wall Street Regulator FINRA Wants To Hire Fired Crypto Employees

Ben Strack

<div id="highlights-block_61ef24747796a" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>Roisman announced last month he intended to resign from the SEC</li>
 <li>Knight also spent two years as counsel for SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, who has advocated for a crypto regulatory framework</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



The former counsel for Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Commissioner Elad Roisman has left the agency to join Coinbase.



Thaya Knight’s last day at the SEC was Friday, she wrote on LinkedIn. Her role at Coinbase as a senior public policy manager entails watching the regulatory landscape, which companies expect <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/crypto-companies-brace-for-year-of-regulation-in-2022/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">to evolve in 2022.</a>



“What we want to do as Coinbase is make sure that we’re raising our hand when we feel the rules of the road are not clear,” <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/coinbase-president-crypto-on-pace-for-1-billion-users-within-5-years/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Coinbase President Emilie Choi said</a> at the Bloomberg Financial Innovation Summit last month.



Knight worked for about a year as the counsel for Roisman, who was appointed to the SEC by then-President Donald Trump in 2018. Roisman <a href="https://www.sec.gov/news/statement/roisman-20211220" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said in a statement</a> last month that he intended to resign by the end of January.  



Before working for Roisman, Knight spent about a year as senior counsel for policy and regulation for the Federal Housing Finance Agency.&nbsp;



She was also previously counsel to SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, who <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/hester-peirce-theres-a-jurisdiction-battle-over-crypto-regulation/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">has been critical</a> of the agency’s <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/when-will-the-sec-approve-a-spot-bitcoin-etf/">fai</a><a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/when-will-the-sec-approve-a-spot-bitcoin-etf/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">l</a><a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/when-will-the-sec-approve-a-spot-bitcoin-etf/">ure to approve a spot bitcoin ETF.</a>   



Knight declined to comment on her move. A spokesperson for Coinbase did not immediately return a request for comment.



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