SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce will resign on October 2

Hester Peirce, a commissioner of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), announced she will resign on October 2. She published her resignation letter on social media platform X on Friday, revealing this date. Peirce is known in the industry as "Crypto Mom," having long advocated for clear rules for the crypto industry. During the tenures of Jay Clayton and Gary Gensler as chairmen, the SEC took a tough enforcement stance on crypto, while she continued to push for industry regulation. During the Trump administration, she was involved in rule-making and was appointed last year to lead the newly established SEC crypto working group.

Her work in crypto encompasses policy statements and guidance on areas such as mining, staking, and meme coins, with the most important aspect being the classification and definition of various crypto assets to clarify regulatory jurisdiction. Recently, the SEC began proposing formal rules, the first being "Regulation Crypto Assets," which establishes a framework for issuing crypto assets that does not trigger strict securities regulation. The SEC also opened a path for tokenization of securities, known as "innovation exemptions," to initiate the era of securities tokenization with a five-year limited period.

Peirce will become an associate professor at Regent University School of Law. After her departure, the SEC will have only two commissioners left, Atkins and Mark Uyeda, and the rules allow the two to constitute a quorum. On the same day, the SEC released a frequently asked questions document on crypto assets, addressing how to avoid triggering the "necessary managerial efforts" determination when marketing tokens, and discussing issues such as when staking receipt tokens and secondary markets are considered "promoters" of investment contracts.