Supreme Court Ruling Expands Presidential Dismissal Power, Crypto Regulatory Outlook Remains Uncertain

According to The Block, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in favor of Trump, expanding the president's power to remove heads of independent federal agencies (excluding the Federal Reserve). The case originated from Trump's dismissal of Democratic FTC Commissioner Rebecca Slaughter in 2025. As the ruling takes effect, the SEC and CFTC are in a new cycle of crypto regulation—the SEC currently has only three Republican commissioners, while CFTC Chairman Michael Selig is the agency's sole commissioner. Former regulatory officials warned that insufficient commissioner seats will undermine the quality of rulemaking and continuity across administrations, stating, "Fewer people participating in discussions may lead to suboptimal outcomes." Meanwhile, Congress is deliberating landmark legislation to reallocate digital asset regulatory authority between the SEC and CFTC and has urged Trump to appoint CFTC commissioners as soon as possible. Analysts pointed out that against the backdrop of Trump's close ties with the crypto industry, while this ruling is beneficial for the industry to advance regulatory reforms in the short term, if the political landscape shifts in the future, rules established by a sole commissioner will be more likely to become "targets for reversal," bringing long-term policy instability risks to the industry.