Paul Atkins could be on the verge of getting closer to his potential role as the new crypto-friendly chair of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, as a Senate committee hearing is reportedly slated for March 27.
Nominated by President Donald Trump on December 4, Atkins’ entry has faced delays due to complications related to financial disclosures stemming from his marriage into a wealthy family.
It remains uncertain if the White House has submitted the necessary documents to the Senate, but Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott is said to be planning a hearing on March 27 to evaluate Atkins’ candidacy, as mentioned in a March 17 post on X.
“There’s no definitive information yet on whether the committee has received Atkins’ paperwork, but this is the most progress we’ve witnessed thus far.”
Atkins will still require a Senate vote at a later date.
Additionally, plans for a bipartisan meeting regarding Atkins’ nomination are in place for March 21.
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This comes after an earlier report on March 3, which noted that financial disclosures were hindering Atkins from arranging a Senate hearing.
His wife’s family is associated with TAMKO Building Products LLC, a company that manufactures residential roofing shingles and is reported to have generated $1.2 billion in revenue in 2023.
“There’s a lot to navigate through,” a former Senate Banking Committee staff member reportedly noted.
“However, he was nominated quite early, leading to a sentiment of impatience surrounding the timeline.”
Atkins previously held the role of SEC commissioner from 2002 to 2008 and has experience as a corporate lawyer at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP in New York. He is anticipated to take a more collaborative stance on crypto regulation compared to former SEC Chair Gary Gensler.
Nearly four months have passed since Atkins was nominated, and over two months since Trump took office on January 20.
Historically, a delayed start for an SEC chair isn’t particularly uncommon.
The last two SEC chairs, Gary Gensler and Jay Clayton, began their terms on April 17, 2021, and May 4, 2017, respectively, both stepping into their roles months after presidential transitions.
Related: SEC’s enforcement case against Ripple may be nearing conclusion
In the meantime, Mark Uyeda has been acting as SEC chair since Gensler’s departure on January 20.
Under Uyeda’s leadership, the SEC has set up a Crypto Task Force led by Commissioner Hester Peirce and rescinded a contentious rule that required financial firms with crypto holdings to classify them as liabilities.
Recently, the SEC has also dismissed several investigations and lawsuits initiated by the Gensler-led commission against various companies in the crypto space over the past month.
Moreover, the SEC is contemplating scrapping a rule that mandates crypto firms to register as exchanges and might even abandon the Biden administration’s proposed crypto custody guidelines, Uyeda revealed on March 17.
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