Paul S. Atkins

Paul Stewart Atkins is an American businessman and lawyer who is chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) since April 2025. Atkins was a commissioner at the SEC from 2002 to 2008. He is known for advocating reduced regulatory burdens. Prior to his appointment, he worked as an advocate for the cryptocurrency industry. and Kappa Alpha Order.

Career Atkins began his career as a lawyer in New York City with Davis Polk & Wardwell, focusing on a wide range of corporate transactions for U.S. and foreign clients, including public and private securities offerings and mergers and acquisitions. He worked in the Paris office for two and a half years, and in 1988 was admitted to provide legal advice in France. He served with chairmen Harvey Pitt, William H. Donaldson, and Christopher Cox.

In 2009, Atkins founded Patomak Global Partners, a financial services firm specializing in regulatory compliance and whose clients would come to include Fidelity Investments, Goldman Sachs, and the US Chamber of Commerce.

In December 2016, Atkins joined a business forum assembled by President-elect Trump to provide strategic and policy advice on economic issues.

Atkins was co-chair of the Token Alliance, a cryptocurrency advocacy group for the Chamber of Digital Commerce. He expanded upon those plans in December at an SEC sponsored event, "Revitalizing American Markets" in honor of the Nation's 250th anniversary.

At the time of his appointment to the SEC, Atkins owned $6 million worth of holdings in crypto-related businesses. During his confirmation, he pledged to divest from these crypto-related businesses. He has since then filed paperwork listing millions dollars worth of investments he sold, but those lists did not include the crypto-related businesses. During his time at the SEC, the SEC has dropped or settled numerous lawsuits with cryptocurrency companies and adopted a lax regulatory approach to cryptocurrency.

In April 2026, during his conformation hearings, Atkins said he disapproved of a SEC rule that required all publicly traded companies disclose their contributions to climate change and the risk that the companies' operations face from climate change.

Personal life Atkins has three sons with his wife Sarah Humphreys Atkins, who is a major Republican donor. As of 2025, their combined net worth is estimated to be $327 million.