WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Friday, August 15, 2025, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Paul Atkins signaled a bold shift in the agency’s approach to cryptocurrency, announcing that the SEC can move forward with blockchain regulation reforms without waiting for Congressional approval. Speaking at a crypto roundtable hosted at the SEC’s headquarters, Atkins emphasized the urgency of updating outdated rules to foster innovation in the digital asset space, according to CoinDesk.
Atkins, who assumed his role earlier this year under President Donald Trump’s administration, criticized the prior “regulation-by-enforcement” strategy under former Chair Gary Gensler. “Innovation has been stifled for years due to market and regulatory uncertainty that the SEC unfortunately fostered,” he remarked during the event. He pledged to collaborate with industry leaders and the SEC’s Crypto Task Force, led by Commissioner Hester Peirce, to craft “a rational, fit-for-purpose framework” for digital assets. This framework aims to provide clear guidelines for crypto asset distribution, custody, and trading, prioritizing investor protection while encouraging blockchain advancements.
The SEC’s proactive stance follows the recent passage of the GENIUS Act, which established a federal framework for stablecoins, and aligns with the President’s Working Group on Digital Asset Markets’ recommendations. Atkins highlighted the agency’s authority to interpret securities laws, particularly the Howey test, to clarify which digital assets are securities. “We need straightforward rules so people can see, OK, is this a commodity? Is this a security?” he told Yahoo Finance, noting that the process could extend into next year but won’t be stalled by legislative gridlock.
Atkins also floated an “innovation exemption” to allow blockchain projects to experiment with tokenized securities, a move that could accelerate the integration of on-chain systems into U.S. markets. “The tokenization of securities is just a wrapper around the security itself,” he explained, underscoring blockchain’s potential for transparency and efficiency. Despite Democratic concerns about loopholes in proposed crypto legislation like the CLARITY Act, Atkins remains focused on making the U.S. a global leader in blockchain finance, a vision he reiterated as part of the SEC’s “Project Crypto” initiative launched earlier this month.
Source: CoinDesk
