On May 3, 2022, the SEC’s Division of Enforcement announced that it will seek to add 20 additional positions to its Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit (formerly known as the Cyber Unit), a special unit tasked with protecting investors in crypto markets and from cyber-related threats. With these additional personnel, the unit will have 50 dedicated positions, including supervisors, investigative staff attorneys, trial counsels and fraud analysts, located in Washington, D.C. and in many regional offices. The expanded unit will focus on investigating violations of the federal securities laws relating to offerings and other transactions in crypto assets, as well as crypto exchanges, decentralized finance platforms, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and stablecoins.

According to an SEC press release, since its formation in 2017, the unit has brought more than 80 enforcement actions in connection with fraudulent and unregistered crypto offerings and platforms, resulting in more than $2 billion in penalties and disgorgement. Additionally, the unit will continue to investigate  and bring enforcement actions relating to inadequate cybersecurity controls at public companies and other SEC registrants and to focus on issues such as proper disclosure of cyber-related risks and incidents.

The SEC’s press release is available here.