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Under Chair Paul Atkins and Crypto Task Force head Hester Peirce, the Securities and Exchange Commission dropped or settled numerous enforcement actions from the prior administration by mid-2025.
The Senate confirmed Paul Atkins as SEC Chair on April 9, 2025, in a 52-44 party-line vote, replacing acting chair Mark Uyeda and signaling a potential shift in the agency's crypto enforcement posture.
Ripple and the SEC reached a final settlement in March 2025, ending four years of litigation with Ripple paying $125 million and SEC dropping its appeal of earlier favorable rulings.
Trump created Strategic Bitcoin Reserve capitalized with 200,000 BTC held by U.S. Treasury
Alex Mashinsky, founder of crypto lender Celsius, was convicted on commodities and wire fraud charges after a trial in federal court.
Trump signed executive order establishing digital asset framework and appointed venture capitalist David Sacks as special advisor for crypto
Trump granted full pardon to Ross Ulbricht one day after inauguration, ending decade-long imprisonment
SEC Chair Gary Gensler resigned effective January 20, ending aggressive crypto enforcement era
FTX creditors began receiving distributions in early 2025 with expected recovery of 119% of claim values, though valuations were pegged to November 2022 petition date at significantly lower Bitcoin prices.
The European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation became fully enforceable on December 30, 2024, establishing the world's first comprehensive regulatory framework for cryptocurrency.
President-elect Trump has named Stephen Miran, a former Treasury adviser and vocal advocate for lighter crypto regulation, as his pick to lead the Council of Economic Advisers.
El Salvador amended its Bitcoin legal tender law in December 2024 as a condition for securing a $1.4 billion IMF loan, making merchant Bitcoin acceptance voluntary rather than mandatory.
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin donated 320 ETH to crypto advocacy group Coin Center just hours after a US appeals court ruled that Treasury sanctions against Tornado Cash exceeded federal authority.
The cryptocurrency industry deployed a record $130 million in campaign contributions and political spending during the 2024 U.S. election cycle, making it the largest corporate political spender for the election.
Russia's federal cryptocurrency mining law took effect November 1, 2024, establishing a legal framework for registered miners and defining tax treatment for mining income.
FTX bankruptcy plan approved for $12.7 billion distribution to creditors in October 2024.
ConsenSys announced June 18, 2024, that the SEC closed its investigation into Ethereum 2.0 and would not bring charges classifying ETH as a security.
Terraform Labs and founder Do Kwon agreed on June 12, 2024, to pay $4.47 billion to settle SEC civil fraud charges in the largest crypto settlement at the time.
SEC approved spot Ethereum ETF applications, opening institutional access to Ethereum holdings
Dutch court sentenced Alexey Pertsev to 64 months in prison on May 14, 2024, for money laundering related to operating the Tornado Cash cryptocurrency mixer.
