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The stablecoin issuer Circle has loaded its arsenal to combat the ongoing regulatory crackdown on cryptocurrencies. By July 1, the role of General Counsel and Head of Corporate Affairs will be filled by Heath Tarbert, a General Counsel with experience in all three branches of the United States government.
According to a June 8 announcement, Tarbert has held senior positions in all three branches of the federal government and in key regulatory bodies, including the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Financial stability and the World Bank Group. He also served as Special Counsel to the US Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
1/ This morning, @circle announced that Heath Tarbert is joining us as Chief Legal Officer and Head of Corporate Affairs. Heath joins Circle from @citsecurities (Citadel Securities), former @CFTC Chair, and worked in @USTreasurythe @WhiteHousethe DOJ and @USSupremeCourt
— Jeremy Allaire (@jerellaire) June 8, 2023
Tarbert joins Circle Securities nearly two years after taking up the position of General Counsel at Citadel Securities, overseeing global legal, compliance, oversight and regulatory matters. He will succeed Flavia Naves, Circle’s general counsel, who reportedly announced her planned departure from the company earlier this year.
“The opportunity to bring Heath’s experience and leadership to our executive team is an outstanding step in Circle’s growth as a global company,” said Circle CEO Jeremy Aller.
Tarbert’s arrival comes amid renewed uncertainty about cryptocurrency regulation in the United States. Earlier this week, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued cryptocurrency exchanges Coinbase and Binance on various charges. Since the crash of FTX last November, the cryptocurrency space has faced regulatory scrutiny, hurting businesses and driving capital overseas.
In a recent interview with Bloomberg, Aller accused U.S. regulators of depressing the market cap of his USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin due to the cryptocurrency crackdown. Over the past 12 months, the share of USDC in the stablecoin market has fallen from 34.88% to 23.05%. The current regulatory environment in the US is favoring Tether USDT stablecoin, whose market share has risen to 65.89% from 47.04% a year ago.