Key Takeaways
President Trump will attend Paul Atkins’ swearing-in as SEC Chair at the White House.
Paul Atkins prioritizes digital assets regulation, including pending resolutions on Ripple and Binance cases.
President Donald Trump will attend Paul Atkins’ private swearing-in ceremony as US SEC Chair, according to the president’s schedule on Roll Call first shared by journalist Eleanor Terrett. The event is set to take place today at 4:00 PM ET in the Oval Office.
Source: Eleanor Terrett
Atkins, nominated by Trump to run the nation’s top financial regulatory agency, formally assumed office on April 21 after receiving Senate confirmation earlier this month.
He now works alongside fellow Commissioners and the agency’s staff to advance the SEC’s mission to facilitate capital formation, maintain fair, orderly, and efficient markets, and protect investors.
Crypto enthusiasts have welcomed Atkins’ official assumption of office, seeing him as a pro-crypto leader, contrary to Gary Gensler, the agency’s tough former chief.
Coinbase Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal congratulated Atkins and expressed gratitude to SEC Commissioner Uyeda for his leadership since being appointed Acting Chair.
“Congratulations to Mr. Atkins. And thank you to Acting Chair Uyeda for his stewardship since January 20,” said Grewal. “We look forward to a new era for digital assets and much more.”
Alexander Grieve, Vice President of Government Affairs at Paradigm, also welcomed the leadership transition. Grieve said it was a much-needed change in SEC leadership.
“Congrats to Chairman Paul Atkins,” Grieve stated. “And a well-deserved thank you to Acting Chairman Mark Uyeda, for leading one of the most productive and constructive starts to a new SEC tenure in decades.”
Busy days ahead for Atkins
Atkins faces a busy agenda as he is sworn in as SEC Chair, with digital assets at the forefront of his priorities. He has pledged that establishing clear, rational, and principled regulations for digital assets will be his top focus.
The SEC is expected to issue decisions soon in the high-profile cases involving Ripple and Binance, with both parties currently under court-approved pauses—an extension in Binance’s case—to facilitate potential settlements.
Meanwhile, a backlog of crypto ETF applications awaits final verdicts. Industry analysts and crypto advocates believe Atkins’ leadership could accelerate approvals that had stalled under previous SEC leadership.
Filings for spot ETFs tied to major altcoins like Solana, XRP, and Dogecoin are among those expected to gain momentum under the new chairmanship.