Former SEC official Amanda Fisher attacks Uniswap over comments

Prominent members of the crypto community have attacked former Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chief of Staff Amanda Fisher over her comments on X.

In response to Uniswap’s recent move to introduce a “fee switch,” Fischer likened the resulting organization to a “shareholder” model.

This means Uniswap will need to register with the SEC, similar to the previous Commission position.

Fisher’s comments then intensified after Miles Jennings, a16z cryptocurrency’s head of policy, defended Uniswap’s system as “transparently creating value directly from an automated system.”

She argued that the timing of Uniswap’s move shows that:This was clearly illegal before cryptocurrencies purchased WH”

read more: Uniswap fee switch: A new era for DeFi or a “sad day for DAOs”?

Crypto Counterattack

Multiple voices from the crypto community responded positively to Fisher’s comments.

First, Uniswap’s recently emboldened founder Hayden Adams was furious that Fisher and Gensler were “restricted” for “weaponizing the government against us” and “wasting thousands of hours of[his]life.”

Uniswap teammates supported Adams’ comments, with former chief legal officer Marvin Anmoli stressing that “a four-year investigation failed…nothing was found. No lawsuits were filed.”

General Counsel Brian Nissler weighed in, calling Fisher’s analysis of the crypto industry “the kind of armchair expert smugness that characterized the failed Gensler SEC.”

Others from across the sector were quick to pile on their stories. Joseph Delong, former CTO of Uniswap fork Sushi, claims he faced “legal harassment from the Gensler SEC” before resigning at the end of 2021.

Sushi Core developers were reportedly served with SEC subpoenas in 2022, as was former “head chef” Jared Gray in 2023.

ShapeShift’s Erik Voorhees noted the lack of clarity in the Fisher era, saying, “There was never a list issued by the SEC of which tokens were securities.”

Former employees and contributors from ConsenSys, Zcash, and Athena all spoke out, calling the Gensler era “disturbed” and an “abuse of power” and suggesting that Fisher issue a public apology.

Even Bankless’ Ryan Adams talked about his troubles with the SEC over the Cosmos staking service in 2019. But, as Fisher points out, this was during the first Trump administration.

Amanda Fisher hits back

Defending his views, Fisher characterized the crypto industry’s approach as “running air traffic from the rooftops and then yelling at the FAA for weaponizing my crackdown on innovation in air travel.”

Fisher dismissed the charges of “violations of law” and highlighted the number of federal judges who have upheld the SEC’s enforcement actions.

She also noted that Judge Mark Wolf recently resigned, citing “the decline of the rule of law from this WH, especially because of corruption in cryptocurrencies.”

Finally, Fisher raised questions about the nature of criticism. She claimed that she was “inundated with messages about my appearance,” and asked Jennings, “Is this a feature of your industry that you’re proud of?”