SEC Chairman Gary Gensler has been running a very aggressive rulemaking process, according to Congressman Bryan Steil, an American politician serving as the U.S. Representative for Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District.
“When you question Chairman Gensler, he is often not terribly straightforward and answering the questions,” he said, speaking on the STA Trading Views – Episode 20 podcast.
“I’m concerned that he’s driving forward an agenda that doesn’t really align with the core mission of the Securities Exchange Commission, as well as what the unintended consequences would be of many of these rules being implemented,” he argued.
First elected in 2018, Congressman Bryan Steil represents Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives.
In 2023, Congressman Steil was appointed Chairman of the Committee on House Administration.
This committee oversees Federal election law, House of Representatives operations, Legislative Branch oversight, and Capitol Security. Congressman
Steil previously served as Ranking Member on the Elections Subcommittee.
During the 90th STA Annual Market Structure Conference, Jack Miller, Head of Global Execution Services at RW Baird, sat down for an exclusive interview with Rep. Bryan Steil to dive into SEC Chair Gensler’s recent testimony and digital assets.
Commenting on the unintended consequences of the rulemaking, Steil said: “I think that we have a real opportunity to examine how proxy advisors are providing advice and counsel to the voting structure of shares for some of our nation’s largest companies.”
According to Steil, there is a duopoly of proxy advisors with ISS and Glass Lewis dominating the space.
“They’re not both registered with the Securities Exchange Commission. It’s not that they can’t provide commentary. I just think we have to have a structure to it,” he said.
“We would be better served our capital markets if we did,” he stressed.
“I think most of us would be concerned if there were only two analysts covering all of our stocks, and those two analysts agreed with each other a lot,” he said,
“That would give everybody concern, but when we think of it on the voting side of the shares from the corporate governance side of this issue, I don’t think there’s enough attention paid to the fact that there are two proxy advisors,” he added.
“I think we have to really look at the broader corporate governance and I think that’s an area that I would love to see the SEC dive into,” Steil said.
Steil also serves on the Subcommittees on Capital Markets and the Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology and Inclusion.
When Miller asked Steil about his work with digital assets, he commented that the Financial Services Committee has put forward the first substantive legislation as it relates to cryptocurrency.
“I think we’re at an early stage in crypto and we’re using the term in a blanket way to cover a lot of different things,” he said.
In July, the House Financial Services Committee passed pieces of legislation out of Committee that establish a regulatory framework for payment stablecoins and protect self-custody for digital assets.
“I think it is really important that we allow that development to occur in the United States is really important,” he added.
I think that it is a real substantive and meaningful step forward. I look forward to having this legislation move all the way through and ultimately to be signed into law,” he said.
