The fake news spread yesterday on the official account of X of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) around the approval of bitcoin ETFs, generated a stir among congressmen in that country. The representatives are demanding answers from the regulator for the situation that, they say, led to market manipulation.

During the afternoon of yesterday, Tuesday, January 9, 2024, the SEC's official account at X (formerly Twitter) published an announcement highlighting that the agency had authorized the issuance of bitcoin spot price exchange-traded funds (ETFs). An unprecedented event in the history of the ecosystem.

But soon after, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler released a clarification, noting that the regulator's account had been "compromised" and that, up to that point, spot bitcoin ETFs had not been approved

After the false information and Gensler's subsequent clarification, several U.S. lawmakers came forward to criticize the situation.

In X, Senator Bill Hagerty called on the SEC to give answers to the U.S. Congress about what happened. This, considering that this regulatory body "would hold a public company accountable if it made such a colossal error".

A similar criticism was voiced by Congressman Bill Huizenga, who chairs the House Subcommittee on Financial Services Investigations and Oversight. This politician questioned Gensler's argument about the hoax published on the SEC account.