Former SEC enforcement chief clashed over Trump cases

A report by Reuters has added new attention to internal tensions at the US Securities and Exchange Commission after the resignation of its former enforcement chief. 

Summary

• Report says Margaret Ryan faced resistance while pursuing cases involving Justin Sun and Elon Musk.
• SEC settled Justin Sun’s case as questions grew over the agency’s enforcement direction.
• Ryan resigned after reported clashes over Trump-linked cases and broader crypto enforcement decisions inside SEC.

The report said the disagreement centered on how the agency handled cases tied to people close to US President Donald Trump.

Margaret Ryan stepped down as director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement on March 16. The agency confirmed her resignation that day and named Sam Waldon as acting director, but it did not give a reason for her exit.

The report said Ryan wanted to press ahead with fraud and other charges in matters involving people linked to Trump. It said SEC Chair Paul Atkins and other Republican appointees resisted that approach, which led to conflict inside the agency.

Justin Sun case became one source of friction

One point of tension involved crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun. The SEC sued Sun and three of his companies in March 2023, alleging unregistered securities sales and wash trading tied to Tronix and BitTorrent.

Earlier this month, the SEC moved to settle that case for $10 million. Sun and the companies did not admit or deny the allegations, and the court filing showed the agency planned to dismiss the claims once the settlement process is completed.

The matter drew more attention because of Sun’s financial ties to the Trump family’s crypto venture, World Liberty Financial. Public reporting said Sun bought $30 million of its tokens in November 2024 and later increased that position to $75 million in January 2025.

Musk lawsuit also added pressure

Another case involved Tesla chief executive Elon Musk. The SEC sued Musk in January 2025, claiming he failed to disclose on time that he had built a stake of more than 5% in Twitter in 2022, which let him keep buying shares at lower prices.

On March 17, the SEC and Musk said in a joint court filing that they were in talks to settle the lawsuit and asked for more time in the case. The filing suggested that further court action might not be needed if the talks succeed.

Ryan’s exit comes at a time when the SEC is already facing questions over its enforcement direction. The agency under Trump has dropped or settled several crypto-related cases that were started during Gary Gensler’s tenure.