The Securities and Exchange Commission is ramping up its crypto enforcement unit, adding 20 professionals to the newly named Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit, the agency announced today.

The unit, which will grow to 50 positions, will be responsible for policing new crypto offerings and exchanges, protecting crypto investors and monitoring cyber-related threats, the SEC said.

"The U.S. has the greatest capital markets because investors have faith in them, and as more investors access the crypto markets, it is increasingly important to dedicate more resources to protecting them," SEC Chairman Gary Gensler said in a statement.

"The Division of Enforcement’s Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit has successfully brought dozens of cases against those seeking to take advantage of investors in crypto markets," he said. "By nearly doubling the size of this key unit, the SEC will be better equipped to police wrongdoing in the crypto markets while continuing to identify disclosure and controls issues with respect to cybersecurity."

At least one advisor believes the announcement was inevitable, especially with the growing demand for a bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF).

“I think this is expected, especially if the SEC is going to approve a bitcoin spot ETF,” Daren Blonski, founder of Sonoma Wealth Advisors in Sonoma, Calif., said. “They’re obviously going to have to ramp up enforcement and mitigate risks and concerns. I think it’s a good thing overall. What crypto lacks is a clear regulatory process.”

Blonski, who uses bitcoin and ethereum in asset allocation plans for some clients, said the challenge for advisors right now is “we don’t know what the SEC is OK and not OK with. Everyone is trying to figure out what diversified crypto looks like. When you make decisions in client portfolios, you’re trying to determine what is acceptable and what will draw unacceptable scrutiny.”

So far, the SEC has rejected all bitcoin spot ETFs, but in February it punted on Grayscale’s most recent application, asking for public comment on the firm’s push to convert its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into a spot ETF. The agency then postponed it’s review until June.

Since it was created in 2017 as the Crypto Unit, the SEC unit has brought more than 80 enforcement actions related to fraudulent and unregistered crypto asset offerings and platforms, resulting in monetary relief totaling more than $2 billion.

The unit has also brought “numerous actions against SEC registrants and public companies for failing to maintain adequate cybersecurity controls and for failing to appropriately disclose cyber-related risks and incident,” the agency said in a release.

"Crypto markets have exploded in recent years, with retail investors bearing the brunt of abuses in this space,” said Gurbir S. Grewal, director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. "The bolstered Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit will be at the forefront of protecting investors and ensuring fair and orderly markets in the face of these critical challenges."

Among the 20 additional staff positions the SEC is adding will be supervisors, investigative staff attorneys, trial counsels and fraud analysts who will work out of the agency’s headquarters in Washington, DC, as well as several regional offices.