SEC Withdraws 14 Gensler-Era Rule Proposals to "Promote Innovation"

Plus Pres. Trump wants the GENIUS Act "to my desk ASAP — NO DELAYS, NO ADD ONS."

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Bruce Carton
June 20, 2025

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Drew Rolle, former Deputy Chief of the Business and Securities Fraud Section in the EDNY, has joined Alston & Bird as a partner in the firm’s New York office.

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Trump SEC chair scraps proposed market rules as he charts new path

The new chair of the US securities watchdog is signalling an about-face in the agency’s approach to regulation, throwing out more than a dozen rules proposed by his predecessor in his first major policy move.

The decision comes as the Trump administration has embraced a laissez-faire stance on securities and investing, reversing the aggressive style of Gary Gensler, the Biden administration’s top cop on Wall Street.

Paul Atkins, chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, withdrew 14 rules last week that had not been finalised by the time Gensler left office, ranging from climate disclosures to cryptocurrency exchanges and artificial intelligence.

by FT

👉 The SEC’s Withdrawal of Proposed Regulatory Actions dated June 12, 2025 is here.

According to the article, the SEC told the FT that “as the chairman has said, we are getting back to our roots of promoting, rather than stifling, innovation….The markets innovate, and the SEC should not be in the business of telling them to stand still.”

Morgan Stanley Taps ‘Specialists’ in Bid for Founders’ Wealth

Morgan Stanley is doubling down on its efforts to manage the wealth of founders, investors and employees of closely held companies, adding a new designation for advisers focused on the space.

The firm is going to label a couple hundred of its 15,000 financial advisers with a “founders specialist designation,” according to Jed Finn, head of Morgan Stanley’s $6 trillion wealth-management business. The advisers will be able offer products and services tailored to the specific needs of clients whose wealth is concentrated in a private company, particularly around liquidity and asset location.

by Bloomberg

Supreme Court Denies Ceritorari Petition to Resolve Circuit Split

On June 6, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court denied a petition for certiorari in Navellier & Associates, Inc. v. SEC, declining to resolve a circuit split regarding the circumstances under which the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) may obtain disgorgement. The Navellier petition, which arose from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, presented a question that has divided the federal appellate courts: whether the SEC may recover disgorgement where there is no evidence that an investor suffered pecuniary harm. Because the Supreme Court declined to answer that question (for now), the SEC’s ability to recover disgorgement in certain cases may depend on where the lawsuit is litigated.

by National Law Review

👉 Article by Timothy Halloran of Bradley Arant Boult Cummings.

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