US Crypto Regulators SEC and CFTC Left with Three Commissioners After Peirce Exit

The SEC and CFTC will be left with three commissioners between them after Hester Peirce leaves the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Peirce is scheduled to leave the SEC on Friday, about two months before the end of her second term extension. Her departure will leave Chair Paul Atkins and Commissioner Mark Uyeda as the SEC’s only remaining commissioners. The agency is expected to have five seats.

That puts the two financial regulators in charge of important parts of US crypto oversight in a smaller position. The SEC is working with two commissioners, while the CFTC has operated with one, Chair Michael Selig, since December 2025.

A familiar, but unusually thin, leadership setup

Peirce was one of the SEC’s most recognisable figures on digital assets. She was widely nicknamed “Crypto Mom” because of her views on crypto policy.

Her exit will mark only the second time in US history that the SEC has operated with two commissioners. The smaller panel may make it harder for the agency to move through its policy agenda, although the report did not identify a specific rule that would be delayed by the vacancies.

The CFTC is in a similar position. Selig has served as its sole commissioner since acting Chair Caroline Pham left in December 2025. A CFTC spokesperson said Selig welcomes new commissioners once they are nominated and confirmed by the Senate, and that the agency is equipped to oversee its part of the crypto market.

Three commissioners, seven empty seats

Across the two agencies, seven commissioner seats will be empty after Friday. President Donald Trump is the only person who can nominate replacements under federal law, and the White House has not announced any nominees or said when it would do so.

A White House official later told the report that Trump intended to nominate members to both agencies “in the near future.” The report also cited a September 4 CNBC story saying White House officials were vetting four candidates for empty CFTC seats. The names of those candidates were not provided, and that account was not checked directly for this article.

The vacancy count is also not divided between the agencies. Mark Uyeda is the only remaining commissioner across these seats who was not appointed by Trump. He was selected by President Joe Biden in 2022.

Crypto rules continue without a new statute

The leadership change comes as the agencies continue to develop crypto policy through rulemaking. The CLARITY Act, which was expected to give the CFTC more authority over digital assets, failed in the Republican-controlled Senate earlier this month.

That leaves the SEC and CFTC to interpret existing federal law. The SEC has issued staff guidance on investment contracts, while the CFTC has described how companies can use blockchain recordkeeping. The agencies have also continued advancing other regulatory work despite not having full leadership.

A previous report from Altcoin Buzz examined the CFTC’s efforts to move crypto market rules forward while the CLARITY Act stalled.

The immediate question is whether Trump’s promised nominations will arrive quickly enough to restore fuller panels. Until then, the SEC and CFTC will be overseeing a large crypto market with three commissioners between them, and with much of the legal framework still being worked out through agency guidance and rulemaking.