Gary Gensler, chair of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, has had mixed messages about cryptocurrencies since taking charge of the regulatory body in 2021.

In an Oct. 22 interview aired on Bloomberg Business, the SEC chair initially pivoted from answering a question about regulating digital assets to wish Bitcoin ( BTC ) a “sweet sixteen” — the cryptocurrency’s white paper was released on Oct. 31, 2008. Gensler suggested that the SEC would maintain its approach considering the risks of digital assets to investors and “regulation by enforcement.”

“We have benefited for nine decades from robust laws from Congress and rules from various agencies [...] to help promote the markets — to protect investors, to promote capital formation and the markets in the middle, and that’s what we’ll continue to do,” said Gensler. 

Reporters questioned how Gensler would respond if Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump were to win reelection in 2024. Trump has pledged to fire the SEC Chair “on day one” if victorious. Gensler declined to comment on his potential ousting or Trump’s World Liberty Financial project.

The SEC chair’s interview came roughly a day after the regulator’s Division of Examinations named crypto assets one of its priorities for 2025. Many business leaders and lawmakers have questioned or criticized Gensler’s approach to the crypto industry, but he has not indicated that he intends to alter the commission’s crackdown.

Bitcoin turning 16

Oct. 31 will mark 16 years to the day that pseudonymous Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto released the cryptocurrency’s white paper through the cypherpunk mailing list. The first Bitcoin transaction followed a few months later, on Jan. 3, 2009, known in the community as Genesis Block Day. 

Related: Bitcoin white paper returns to Bitcoin.org website

Though a recent HBO documentary suggested cryptographer and computer scientist Peter Todd was Satoshi, many viewers questioned the film’s conclusions. To date, no evidence has definitively unmasked the identity of Bitcoin’s creator, though some theories suggest early contributor Hal Finney and Hashcash inventor Adam Back. 

At the time of publication, the price of Bitcoin was $67,370, having risen by more than 6% in the last 30 days. 

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