Hester Peirce exits SEC for Regent Law in November

Hester Peirce will leave the SEC in November 2026 to join Regent University School of Law as professor.

Regent University School of Law announced on May 19 that Hester Peirce will join its faculty as associate professor starting in November 2026. The announcement signals Peirce is winding down her time at the SEC after more than seven years as commissioner.

“Greg Jacob and Hester Peirce have served at the highest levels of law, government, and public life,” said Dean S. Ernie Walton. “Their decision to join Regent Law full time is a remarkable blessing for our students.”

What Peirce built at the SEC and what she is leaving behind

Peirce is widely known in the crypto industry as “Crypto Mom” for her consistent advocacy for digital asset innovation. Her dissents from enforcement-heavy SEC actions under former chair Gary Gensler earned her the nickname and the industry’s loyalty.

Peirce became an SEC commissioner in January 2018 and was named head of the Crypto Task Force in January 2025. Crypto.news has reported on the task force’s formation and its 10-point roadmap for resolving the SEC’s backlog of crypto regulatory issues.

Her term technically expired in mid-2025 but SEC commissioners can serve up to eighteen months beyond expiry until a replacement is confirmed. Crypto.news has also tracked her consistent position that the agency should allow experimentation rather than applying securities law reflexively.

“All I’m asking is that we have an innovation policy that allows people to innovate and try new things,” she said in a recent interview.

What her departure means for crypto regulation

Peirce’s exit removes the most prominent pro-crypto voice inside the SEC at a critical moment. The Crypto Task Force she led has been central to the agency’s shift away from enforcement-only oversight toward clearer rules.

Crypto.news has covered expert analysis that even with a friendlier SEC, courts remain the unpredictable variable in how US crypto regulation ultimately takes shape. At Regent Law, Peirce will teach securities regulation, financial markets, digital assets and public policy.