TechFlow News, April 21: U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Paul Atkins delivered a speech marking his first year in office at the Economic Club of Washington, D.C. The SEC is advancing reforms to its digital asset regulatory framework, incorporating them into its “A-C-T” strategy—short for Advancing Regulatory Modernization, Clarifying Regulatory Boundaries, and Transforming the Rulemaking Framework. Regarding crypto assets, the SEC has released a classification system for crypto tokens, dividing digital assets into five categories, four of which fall outside the definition of securities.
Atkins stated that the SEC is set to launch an “Innovation Exemption” mechanism, providing a limited, compliance-oriented framework enabling market participants to conduct tokenized securities transactions on-chain. The SEC has also launched Project Crypto to adapt securities rules and regulatory frameworks to the trend of capital markets moving on-chain.
Additionally, last month the SEC signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to harmonize key definitions, clarify regulatory jurisdictions, and coordinate joint regulatory matters—including those involving digital assets. Atkins further noted that the U.S.’s prior approach to crypto asset regulation had driven innovation overseas.
