US Crypto May Be Left Behind by Asia in the Next Bull Run

• “The next bull run is going to start in the East,” Cameron Winklevoss said of crypto’s outlook on Sunday.
• Crypto cannot be stopped and the US will be left behind if it chooses not to embrace digital assets, he said.
• US regulators need to provide clearer crypto rules, said Winklevoss, whose firm Gemini is under SEC scrutiny.

The US crypto industry will be left behind if the country’s market regulator doesn’t start laying out clearer rules for handling digital assets, according to Cameron Winklevoss.

The co-founder of Gemini warned on Sunday that countries in Asia could surge ahead in the digital asset space if the Securities and Exchange Commission’s ongoing crackdown continues to cause confusion in crypto markets.

“My assignment at the moment is that the next bull run starts in the East,” Winklevoss continued Twitter.

“It will be a humbling reminder that crypto is a global asset class and that the West, indeed the US, has always only had two options: embrace it or be left behind.”

“It can’t be stopped. We know that,” he added.

The SEC has targeted some of crypto’s highest-profile names in recent weeks.

In January, the regulator filed a lawsuit against Gemini, the crypto exchange founded by Winklevoss and his twin brother Tyler in 2014, and crypto giant Genesis’ lending arm. The SEC claims the two firms’ joint interest-bearing “Gemini Earn” program constitutes an offering of unregistered securities, which is in violation of the law.

Kraken, the world’s third largest crypto exchange, agreed to pay the regulator $30 million and to shut down its “staking” program in the US earlier in February. The service offered customers a return of up to 21% if they agreed to lock in crypto for use on the blockchain.

The SEC’s recent tough approach contrasts with watchdogs in Asian places like Singapore, which has stated its ambition to become an international hub for blockchain finance.

The US is likely to be “left in the dust” if the regulator does not compromise with crypto investors, according to Winklevoss.

“Any government that doesn’t offer clear rules and sincere guidance will be left in the dust. Quickly,” he said.

“This would mean missing out on the biggest period of growth since the rise of the commercial Internet.”

Read more: SEC’s crypto crackdown escalates as Winklevoss twins firm over ‘unregistered securities’ Here’s what they are.