Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) testified before the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday, expressing her steadfast refusal to endorse Bitcoin exchange-traded products due to pervasive fraud within cryptocurrency markets.

During the nomination hearing, Crenshaw and other candidates for Senate confirmation defended their records, with cryptocurrency issues receiving scant attention. However, Crenshaw’s stance on Bitcoin exchange-traded products (ETPs) surfaced briefly as she seeks another term with the SEC. In January, following the SEC’s court defeat against Grayscale and subsequent policy reversal on Bitcoin spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs), Crenshaw reiterated her opposition, emphasizing that these products aren’t technically ETFs but ETPs, which adhere to different regulations. She argued that approving Bitcoin products could “lead us down a perilous path, further compromising investor protection.”

Crenshaw reiterated on Thursday her belief that significant global fraud and market opacity necessitated her opposition. “I worry these products will inundate markets and be found in the retirement accounts of U.S. households that can least afford to lose their savings to the fraud and manipulation that appears prevalent in spot Bitcoin markets and will impact the ETPs,” she contended in January. The SEC is currently considering similar approvals for Ethereum’s ether (ETH) trading products.

The committee also heard testimonies from other nominees: Christy Goldsmith Romero, a Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) member nominated by President Joe Biden to chair the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.; Kristin Johnson, another CFTC commissioner, for the Treasury Department’s assistant secretary for financial institutions; and Hawaii Insurance Commissioner Gordon Ito for the Financial Stability Oversight Council.

Crenshaw, who has served as an SEC commissioner since her unanimous Senate confirmation four years ago, has consistently supported SEC Chair Gary Gensler’s approach to digital assets, viewing most crypto tokens as securities requiring registration with the agency.

This nomination round is crucial for the CFTC, which risks losing two Democratic members if the appointments are confirmed, potentially hampering its effectiveness in overseeing digital assets. Chair Rostin Behnam would remain as the sole Democrat appointee.

The nomination process for financial regulators requires initial approval from the Senate Banking Committee, followed by a full Senate vote.

Thursday’s hearing briefly touched on the custody of digital assets by U.S. banks. Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) inquired about Goldsmith Romero’s perspective on banks handling cryptocurrency and conducting business with digital asset firms. Goldsmith Romero responded, “I don’t think it’s the FDIC’s role to dictate which industries or companies banks should provide services to.”