"Crypto Mom" also leaves SEC...Peirce's exit shakes cryptocurrency regulatory war

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Hester Peirce, a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) commissioner known as 'Crypto Mom' in the cryptocurrency industry, is leaving the SEC to become a professor at Regent University School of Law. Peirce's departure, who has been an industry-friendly voice in digital asset regulatory discussions, is expected to bring changes to the internal structure of the SEC, where key agendas such as stablecoins, tokenization, and exchange registration regulations remain.

BeInCrypto reported on May 20 (local time) that Commissioner Peirce is scheduled to conclude her tenure at the SEC and join Regent University School of Law as an associate professor in November 2026. Regent University announced the appointments of Peirce and former Department of Labor Solicitor Gregory F. Jacob in a press release on May 19. Peirce is expected to teach securities regulation, financial markets, digital assets, and public policy.

Peirce joined the SEC in January 2018. Prior to that, she served as Senior Counsel to the U.S. Senate Banking Committee and as a Senior Research Fellow at George Mason University's Mercatus Center. Peirce earned her Juris Doctor degree from Yale Law School and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Case Western Reserve University. Her second five-year term expired in June 2025, and she has continued her SEC duties in a holdover capacity.

Peirce was regarded as an internal dissenting voice who criticized the enforcement-centric approach in digital asset cases during the tenure of former SEC Chairman Gary Gensler. Peirce raised concerns about relying on enforcement actions instead of codified regulations and also supported the token safe harbor proposal, which would allow development teams up to three years to achieve network decentralization before securities registration applies.

BeInCrypto reported that the industry views Peirce's early dissent as one of the factors that led to the approval of Bitcoin (BTC) spot exchange-traded funds in 2024 and the SEC's more relaxed stance on memecoins and developer activities in 2025. Peirce recently led the SEC's cryptocurrency task force, launched in January 2025, holding public roundtables and pushing for the withdrawal of existing bank custody guidance and the inclusion of industry figures to advise on tokenization and exchange regulations.

Peirce's departure coincides with a time when industry-friendly voices within the SEC are diminishing. According to BeInCrypto, the SEC is currently operating with a three-commissioner structure following the recent departure of a Democratic commissioner. Furthermore, Senator Cynthia Lummis, considered a figure favorable to the cryptocurrency industry, has also indicated her retirement from public office in 2027.

The selection of Peirce's successor is considered a variable that will influence the pace of the SEC's future rule-making regarding token classification, custody, and exchange registration. Industry lawyers believe that the stance of the next candidate will determine the progress of the task force agendas that Peirce had begun to advance.

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