SEC Struggling To Recruit Crypto Specialists As Candidates Unwilling To Divest Digital Asset Holdings

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is having a tough time recruiting professionals to help regulate crypto.

The SEC’s Office of Inspector General (OIG), which provides oversight of the regulator’s operations, notes in a recent report that the commission believes it is crucial to recruit crypto specialists to investigate new and evolving issues in the digital asset markets.

Several factors, however, are making the effort difficult to accomplish, according to the OIG.

“Officials in several SEC divisions cited a small candidate pool of qualified experts and high competition from private sector recruitment as challenges in filling crypto asset-related positions. Officials also reported that many qualified candidates hold crypto assets, which the Office of the Ethics Counsel has determined would prohibit them from working on particular matters affecting or involving crypto assets.

This prohibition, according to SEC officials, has been detrimental to recruiting, as candidates are often unwilling to divest their crypto assets to work for the SEC.”

The SEC refers to the digital asset space as an “evolutionary risk” and says it requested additional crypto-related positions for the 2024 fiscal year.

The regulator specifically wants to add staff to its Examinations, Trading and Markets, and Enforcement divisions, as well as the Office of the General Counsel and the Office of International Affairs.

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