Fmr. SEC Chair Jay Clayton on bitcoin ETF: Approval is inevitable, there’s ‘nothing left to decide’

Former SEC Chairman Jay Clayton joins ‘Squawk Box’ to discuss the recent Ivy League backlash, DEI hiring policies, state of spot bitcoin ETF approval, and more.

INVESTMENTS, AND NOT ONLY ARE YOU GOING TO DO AT LEAST AS WELL, YOU’RE GOING TOMAKE THE ENVIRONMENT BETTER. THAT’S — >> HOW DO WE DO DEI NOW? CLAUDINE GAY,WAS SHE THE BEST PERSON FOR THAT LEADERSHIP ROLE AT HARVARD? I SAW GUYS LIKE JASON FURMAN DIE

ON THIS HILL. THAT’S THE HILL HE’S GOING TO DIE ON THAT WE’RE NOT GOING TO OUTSOURCE GETTING RID OF THIS. BUT WAS SHE THE RIGHT PERSON FROM THE VERY BEGINNING? >> LOOK, I DON’T KNOW BECAUSE I WASN’T THERE MAKING THOSE DECISIONS, BUT I THINK THAT

PEOPLE HAVE TO ASK THEMSELVES ARE WE DOING ENOUGH RIGOROUS SELECTION FOR THESE POSITIONS? OBVIOUSLY THESE POSITIONS. LIKE I SAID, $14 BILLION OF ANNUAL REVENUE. YOU NEED SOMEBODY THAT HAS DEEP MANAGEMENT EXPERIENCE AND THE LIKE. >> WHY DO WE CARE, THOUGH? IT’S A PRIVATE UNIVERSITY.

LET THEM WITHER ON THE VINE. IF THIS DAMAGES THEIR REPUTATION — >> PRIVATE COMPANIES, OKAY, WE STILL CARE A LOT ABOUT WHAT PRIVATE COMPANY DIES DO IN OUR SOCIETY. THEY MAY NOT BE SUBJECT TO THE PUBLIC SHAREHOLDER CHECKS, BUT THEY’RE CERTAINLY SUBJECT TO

REGULATION AND THE LIKE. IF YOU’RE A PRIVATE COMPANY IN THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY, YOU’RE SUBJECT TO ALL SORTS OF REGULATION. >> HARVARD MOVED ON THIS BECAUSE THEY SAW JOB PLACEMENT FOR THEIR GRADUATES DROP SIGNIFICANTLY. THEY SAW THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WANTING TO GET INTO THE SCHOOL

DROP SIGNIFICANTLY THIS YEAR, AND THEY SAW DONATIONS DOWN. >> CHECKS FROM THE OUTSIDE ON WHAT’S GOING ON. BUT LOOK AT THE — LOOK AT THE PLACE THAT UNIVERSITIES HOLD IN OUR SOCIETY. WHAT DO PARENTS — WHAT ARE PARENTS WILLING TO DO TO GET

CHILDREN A TICKET TO THESE EXCLUSIVE UNIVERSITIES? THEY’RE WILLING TO DO — THAT TELLS YOU HOW VALUABLE THEY ARE. AND LOOK, WE’VE ALL BENEFITTED FROM WHAT UNIVERSITIES HAVE PRODUCED. THE FACT THAT PEOPLE TAKE WHAT THEY LEARN AT UNIVERSITIES OUT INTO THE WORLD.

WE ARE THE LEADERS IN THE WORLD IN SO MANY INDUSTRIES. THAT HAS ITS ROOTS IN OUR UNIVERSITIES WITHOUT A DOUBT. NOW, WE CAN’T LOSE THAT, AND IF IT TAKES A LITTLE BIT OF A KICK FROM THE GOVERNMENT OR A LITTLE BIT OF KICK FROM THE PRIVATE

SECTOR TO GET THAT KIND OF ACCOUNTABILITY AND INTROSPECTION, SO BE IT. >> THERE’S BEEN SOME DAMAGE. THERE’S NO DOUBT. I WAS THINKING ABOUT IT, SO I HAVE ALL THESE SWEATSHIRTS FROM MY DAUGHTER WHO WENT — AND I WEAR THEM NOW, AND PEOPLE — IT CAUSES CONVERSATION.

YOU CAME IN TODAY, TALKING ABOUT BITCOIN, I SAID YOU’RE AN ADJUNCT PROFESSOR AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA AND HERE WE ARE, TEN MINUTES LATER, THAT’S ALL WE’VE TALKED ABOUT. IT’S NOT GOOD. >> WE SHOULD KEEP TALKING ABOUT IT, THOUGH. WE CAN’T — I MEAN —

>> WHAT HAPPENS WITH BITCOIN? ARE THEY GOING TO — IS THE S.E.C. GOING TO SIGN OFF ON A BITCOIN ETF, DO YOU THINK? >> I THINK APPROVAL’S INEVITABLE? >> IMMINENTLY? >> I THINK THERE’S NOTHING LEFT TO DECIDE. LOOK, I CREDIT THE S.E.C. FOR WHERE THEY ARE.

WHAT — WHERE ARE WE W? WE’RE COMFORTABLE WITH THE EXPOSURE. PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW WHAT THE COST IS. THEY NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE UNDERLYING BITCOIN MARKET. IS THE BITCOIN UNDERLYING TRADING MARKET SOMETHING THAT IS WHAT I WOULD SAY IS ROBUST ENOUGH, EFFICACIOUS ENOUGH WHERE

YOU CAN RELY ON IT? IT IS MUCH BETTER TODAY THAN IT WAS FIVE YEARS AGO. FIVE YEARS AGO, THERE WAS LADDERING, THERE WAS ALL SORTS OF HITHINGS THAT YOU WOULDN’T WT TO MAKE AVAILABLE TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC BECAUSE OF THAT RISK, AND THE LAST THING — AND I THINK

THIS IS MISSED, IS TECHNOLOGY TO ACTUALLY PROVIDE THE PRODUCT. THE CUSTODYING, CREATE THE REDEEM. THIS IS A BIG STEP, NOT JUST FOR BITCOIN BUT FOR FINANCE GENERALLY, IF YOU CAN DIGITIZE, TOKENIZE UNDERLYING ASSETS AND TRADE THAT WAY, THAT’S A POTENTIAL SIGNIFICANT CHANGE

ACROSS FINANCE, NOT JUST IN THE, YOU KNOW, CRYPTO SPACE. >> BUT YOU THINK BITCOIN ETF APPROVAL IS COMING AND IMMINENT AS WELL? >> YEAH, I DO. I COULD BE WRONG, BUT THAT’S WHAT I THINK. >> OKAY. YOUR OPINION MATTERS, FORMER S.E.C. CHAIRMAN. >> I DON’T LIKE WHAT’S

HAPPENING. AND THEN WHEN YOU ABUSE DEI, THEN YOU SET BACK THE MOVEMENT, AND WE’RE STILL NOWHERE WHERE WE NEED TO BE, S&P CEOs, BOARD MEMBERS, PEOPLE OF COLOR THAT REPRESENT. WE’VE GOT MILES TO GO BUT THIS LIKE CASTS A PALL THE WAY THAT IT WAS ADMINISTERED.

I MEAN, WE CAN’T IGNORE THAT WE HAVE A LOT MORE WORK TO DO. >> WELL, I THINK THAT’S WHERE YOU HAVE TO START, JOE. WE HAVE MILES TO GO. BUT LET’S — I MEAN, LET ME RECOGNIZE, WE HAVE MILES TO GO. WE STILL HAVE PROBLEMS.

ANYBODY WHO SAYS THAT THEY DON’T SEE BIAS IN SOCIETY DOESN’T HAVE THEIR EYES OPEN. >> OLD BOY NETWORK AND ALL THAT STUFF. >> ABSOLUTELY. >> YEAH. >> I’VE SEEN IT IN EVERY ORGANIZATION I’VE BEEN. LESSER AND MORE PEOPLE MAKING IMPROVEMENTS. LET ME GIVE THE AMERICAN PEOPLE

SOME CREDIT HERE, IF YOU TRAVEL THE WORLD, THERE’S NO COUNTRY THAT IS TRYING TO