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Peirce calls for regulatory clarity as she exits the SEC

Hester Peirce renewed her call for clear and workable rules for the digital asset sector on her final day at the SEC (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission). Peirce argued that regulators must take clearer steps so privacy-enhancing technologies can be adopted within a legal framework.

In one of her final speeches on September 23 at the SIFMA Digital Assets Conference, Peirce said the U.S. is at a critical crossroads between financial surveillance and the protection of personal data. She outlined a model in which people can comply with legal obligations without having to fully expose sensitive personal information.

What was her line inside the SEC?

During more than eight years in office, Peirce stood out for her dissenting stance, especially under the previous SEC leadership, when enforcement actions often took precedence over rulemaking. She had proposed a “safe harbor” for token projects years ago and later led the agency’s Crypto Task Force.

For the market, this approach is not just a legal debate. For crypto companies, issuers and brokerage platforms operating in the U.S., uncertainty over which products fall under which rules directly affects compliance costs and new product plans.

Data-collection model criticized, blockchain tools in focus

Peirce said the U.S. financial regulatory system has long operated on a model of broad data collection and storage about consumers. While the system is intended to fight crime, she said it creates massive data pools that increase the risk of cyberattacks, data breaches and consumer profiling through intermediary data firms.

In Peirce’s view, the issue is not only privacy; centralized data repositories also carry costs for national security and consumer trust. For that reason, technologies that can support both legal oversight and individual data protection are drawing more attention in the financial system.

Which tools are at the center of the debate?

  • Zero-knowledge proofs make it possible to show a transaction complies with the rules without exposing all the data.
  • Verifiable credentials aim to prove a user’s reliability without sharing their full identity.
  • Blockchain infrastructure can provide models that securely track transaction records while leaving control of personal data with the user.

Peirce said the main missing piece in this area is not technology but regulation, adding:

“What is missing is a regulatory framework that allows and encourages these technologies to be adopted”
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What comes next for the market?

Peirce’s departure means one of the SEC’s most visible advocates for prioritizing rulemaking over enforcement is leaving office. In the U.S. crypto market, that could make the debate over regulatory uncertainty even more important for companies developing privacy-enhancing solutions, token projects and compliance infrastructure.

In the near term, the sector will be watching whether the SEC and other U.S. agencies move toward concrete rules that balance privacy and security in digital assets. For financial markets, this issue is seen as one that could shape not only the regulatory approach, but also whether innovation stays in the U.S.

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