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Former Congressman Reveals Gary Gensler’s Duality
Sharp Turn in Position After Taking Office as SEC Chairman
Returns to MIT to Teach, Coinbase and Gemini Launch Countermeasures
In a program aired on May 13, host Patrick McHenry asked, “Is Gensler as tough on crypto privately as he is publicly?” McHenry directly denied this, emphasizing, “No… not at all.” He recalled that during Gary Gensler’s tenure as a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), he actively participated in blockchain and digital asset courses, publicly acknowledging their potential. Patrick McHenry stated that Gary Gensler understands blockchain and recognizes the value of digital assets.
Gerald Gallagher, General Counsel of Sei Labs, added that Gary Gensler even participated in designing the early model of “airdrop” during his time at MIT, a contribution that is rarely mentioned in his current official resume.
However, this positive attitude towards cryptocurrency assets experienced a dramatic reversal after Gary Gensler assumed office as SEC Chairman in 2021. He has pushed for a series of stringent regulatory policies, initiating over 100 enforcement actions against the crypto industry during his tenure, including actions against major projects like Coinbase, Binance, and Ripple.
Patrick McHenry admitted that he had misjudged Gensler’s stance: “I naively thought he wouldn’t be that bad, and it was indeed very disappointing.” He described discussions with Gary Gensler about crypto policy as often feeling “confusing,” with Gensler sometimes nodding in agreement, only to later overturn his previous statements, indicating a lack of consistency in his policy direction. Patrick McHenry speculated that these reversals and radical positions might be related to “political pressure,” rather than stemming from Gary Gensler’s personal views.
Gary Gensler officially stepped down from the SEC on January 20, 2025, and returned to MIT to teach courses on fintech and artificial intelligence. However, the controversies he left in the industry have yet to subside.
At the end of 2024, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong directly announced that the company would terminate its collaboration with law firms that had previously employed former SEC officials, accusing these individuals of participating in “illegal suppression of the cryptocurrency industry.”
Subsequently, Gemini also announced that unless MIT removed Gary Gensler from his teaching position, it would no longer hire MIT graduates, marking another wave of countermeasures targeting academia.