The Shark Tank Investor and Venture Capitalist Kevin O’Leary has urged cryptocurrency exchanges to “keep up with regulation” if they want to “stay out of the way” of Gary Gensler and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
In an interview on February 20 with TraderTV Live, O’Leary said US lawmakers are “fatigued” by crypto crashes and will only get more ruthless if companies continue to fail to comply with regulations:
“You have to keep up with regulation, you have to stay out of Gensler’s way at the SEC and other regulators. Those men in Washington are not happy. FTX poked the bear, and the bear is awake and angry.”
“These senators are really tired, they are really tired of meeting every six months when the next cryptocurrency company blows up and goes to zero,” he said, and added “because they are totally unregulated and keep issuing tokens that are worthless.”
Venture funding for new #crypto projects is virtually dead and aftermarket trading for existing projects is at massive discounts. reason? The #regulator is now regulating by enforcement, penalties & massive purposes. The venture community has moved on to the next “big” thing, #AI pic.twitter.com/ChpjYIY9Dl
— Kevin O’Leary aka Mr. Wonderful (@kevinolearytv) February 20, 2023
Funding for new cryptocurrency projects is virtually dead and existing projects are trading on the secondary market at deep discounts. Because? The regulator is now regulating through strict enforcement, sanctions, and massive fines. The venture community has moved on to the next “big” thing, which is AI.
O’Leary said that The SEC’s $30 million hit to Kraken and the order to immediately cease its staking services should put the industry on alert and comply with regulations by all possible means.
In light of recent regulatory measures, The Shark Tank investor predicted that regulated trading platforms will be better investments than their unregulated counterparts in the coming years:
“I think that the value of regulated exchanges is going to increase in the next few years, while the unregulated ones will go out of business or the regulators will make them go to zero.”
O’Leary recently confessed to losing essentially 100% of the $15 million FTX paid him to be their official spokesperson.
Despite admitting that FTX was a “bad” investment, Mr. Wonderful has continued to defend former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, stating that the controversial figure should be treated as innocent until proven guilty and adding that he would not rule out reinvesting in the failed businessman:
I am not scared of investing in entrepreneurs that have had catastrophic failures. Failure is often the best teacher.
— Kevin O’Leary aka Mr. Wonderful (@kevinolearytv) February 7, 2023
I’m not afraid to invest in entrepreneurs who have had catastrophic failures. Failure is often the best teacher.
The Shark Tank investor has previously expressed his distaste for some of the more decentralized and unregulated players in the sector.
On August 13, O’Leary said that the Dutch authorities were right to arrest Alexey Pertsev – the creator of the Ethereum-based cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash.– because such apps and the “crypto cowboys” who run them “mess with the primal forces of regulation.”
Clarification: The information and/or opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views or editorial line of Cointelegraph. The information presented here should not be taken as financial advice or investment recommendation. All investment and commercial movement involve risks and it is the responsibility of each person to do their due research before making an investment decision.
Keep reading:
Investments in crypto assets are not regulated. They may not be suitable for retail investors and the entire amount invested may be lost. The services or products offered are not directed or accessible to investors in Spain.