Hester Peirce, known as ‘Crypto Mom’, departs SEC effective October 2

Hester Peirce, the SEC commissioner who earned the nickname “Crypto Mom” for her persistent push toward friendlier digital asset regulation, is stepping down from the agency on October 2. She will join Regent University School of Law as an associate professor in November, teaching courses on securities regulation and digital assets. Her departure closes out nearly nine years at the commission and leaves the SEC operating with just two of its five seats filled. A tenure defined by dissent and digital assets Peirce was first appointed by President Donald Trump and took her seat on January 11, 2018. She was confirmed for a second term in 2020, though that term technically expired on June 5, 2025. SEC rules allow commissioners to serve in a holdover capacity for up to 18 months after their term lapses, which is exactly what she did. Peirce led the SEC’s Crypto Task Force, an effort aimed at developing a more coherent framework for how digital assets should be treated under securities law. Her proposals included safe harbor periods for token projects, essentially giving startups time to decentralize before facing the full weight of securities regulations. More recently, she expressed in...