President-elect Donald Trump reportedly interviewed Paul Atkins for the position of SEC Chair. Several reports claimed that Atkins is the current favorite for the role, boosting his prediction market odds.

Atkins previously served as the SEC Chair and pursued crypto advocacy in the private sector after his tenure concluded.

Paul Atkins: The Next SEC Chair?

According to a Bloomberg report, Trump is considering Atkins to be a leading candidate for this role. Since 2020, Atkins has been serving on the advisory board of the Chamber of Digital Commerce. He’s a known advocate for blockchain development and investments.

If selected, Atkins will replace Gary Gensler in late January once Trump takes office. The current SEC chair announced his impending resignation earlier this month while also defending his pessimistic perspective towards the crypto market.

“Atkins is someone who is not only crypto-savvy but possesses a deep understanding of the inner workings of the agency as both a former commissioner and staffer. Atkins is seen as being capable of establishing a pro-innovation agenda while returning the agency to a … standard many… feel was lost under… Gensler,” claimed Fox Business reporter Eleanor Terrett.

Donald Trump has sworn to support crypto through a sweeping plan of appointments and reforms in his upcoming administration. Although Trump plans to turn over much of the SEC’s jurisdiction over crypto to the CFTC, the SEC is nevertheless a vital component of crypto regulation. In this role, Atkins could significantly benefit the industry.

Terrett claimed that Atkins is currently the most likely candidate for the position, but this is not set in stone. Several other candidates, including those with SEC experience, are also in the funning. For example, “Crypto Mom” Hester Peirce is also a possible candidate, and she is a current SEC Commissioner under Gensler.

If nothing else, these rumors have proved credible in the past. As BeInCrypto reported earlier, Trump also nominated pro-crypto candidate Scott Bessent for the role of Treasury Secretary. If this buzz proves correct, Paul Atkins will lead a much friendlier SEC than Gensler’s.

Overall, it’s now becoming highly likely that the US will have a pro-crypto advocate as the SEC leader and its regulatory scrutiny of the industry will likely ease.

BitWise filed an application with the SEC to create an ETF based on its 10 Crypto Index Fund. If approved, this would be the most diversified and extended crypto ETF in the US market.

Earlier this week, BitWise also filed for a Solana ETF with the SEC, following the applications of Canary Capital, VanEck, and 21Shares

BitWise is Looking to Expand its Crypto ETF Offerings

According to the filing, the fund includes Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, XRP, Cardano, Avalanche, Chainlink, Bitcoin Cash, Polkadot, and Uniswap. BitWise has maintained this initial fund since 2018, correlating its value with the ten most highly valued cryptocurrencies.

“Remember when I was speculating that ADAs HUGE price movement was from someone purchasing ADA for an ETF? NYSE Arca just submitted a filing to the SEC to launch a Bitwise 10 Crypto Index Fund with Cardano as the fifth largest asset. I imagine Coinbase will follow, first of many,” influencer Big Pey posted on X (formerly Twitter).

BitWise joined the crypto ETF market earlier this year with its Bitcoin ETF (BITB). The firm was among the first ten applicants to file for an ETF with the SEC.

With the filing of this latest application, it seems like BitWise is looking to leverage the growing institutional appeal toward the broader crypto market. The firm also recently filed for an XRP exchange-traded product (ETP) in Europe.

The SEC officially acknowledged this submission, starting a countdown for the Commission to either reject or approve it. However, a deadline for deciding on this application has yet to be confirmed.

Overall, a new friendliness to the crypto industry is sweeping the US financial regulatory apparatus. Under Trump’s administration and a new SEC leader, the industry is likely to see more diverse ETFs being approved.

The XRP price is consolidating just below the $1.4 mark, but the technical structure continues to show bullish strength. Interestingly,  XRP has been down by about 4.35% in the past 24 hours, reaching a 24-hour low of $1.296, according to Coinmarketcap data. 

According to an XRP analysis on TradingView, the technical setup is still pointing to a continued price surge. The analysis suggests that XRP could soon rally further, with a near-term price target set at $1.90.

XRP Price Bullishness Continues

The XRP price surge earlier this month was very unprecedented. Particularly, the XRP price surged from a low of $0.4976 on November 3 to reach a three-year high of $1.6 on November 23. This translates to a 220% price increase in over 20 days. 

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However, since it reached this three-year high, XRP has entered a correction phase, retreating by almost 20%. Despite this price correction, XRP has largely traded above a main trendline that has propped up the price during the journey up.

As it stands, technical analysis shows that the XRP price is about to bounce off or break below this trendline, which could make or do its price trajectory from here. An adherence to this main trendline would see XRP bouncing up to the upside, much like it did on November 24. After bouncing up at this point, XRP continued from a low of $1.2775 to retest the $1.54 price level again on November 24.

Now, with the XRP price retesting this major trendline, the more bullish option is an immediate bounce to the upside. A break to the upside would see XRP resuming its uptrend up to the $1.9 price level. Keeping this in mind, the analyst emphasized critical price zones that could shape XRP’s trajectory in the coming sessions. The range between $1.520 and $1.620 has been identified as a crucial area where the price could encounter strong resistance in the coming sessions.

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What’s Next For XRP?

At the time of writing, XRP is trading at $1.39 and is still trading around this main trend line. However, the price has yet to show a decisive bounce from this level. Particularly, current price action points to a continued consolidation in the past few hours. 

While the XRP price continues to exhibit signs of bullishness, there exists the possibility of a break to the downside. This break to the downside would be highlighted by a daily close below $1.38. Should this occur, XRP is likely to extend its decline with a retest of the next significant support at $1.32.

Featured image created with Dall.E, chart from Tradingview.com