The US Securities and Exchange Commission announced that it is proposing new rule changes for crypto assets as part of its 2026 agenda. Paul Atkins, chairman of the authority, said these steps aim to make the regulatory framework for crypto assets clearer and provide more legal insight into the market.
Preparation for a new regulation under three headings
The drafts announced by the SEC were grouped under three main headings. Accordingly, the institution is working on crypto brokerage firms, alternative transaction systems, digital asset transactions in national stock exchanges, and exemptions and safe harbor regulations for digital assets. It was stated that the agenda was prepared in line with the crypto policies of the US President Donald Trump administration.
Paul Atkins noted that it is aimed to clarify the capital raising processes with tokenized securities and digital assets. For one of the drafts related to the offering and sale of crypto assets, the SEC stated that the proposals could provide greater market certainty, support capital formation and create room for innovation. The institution also emphasized that it aims to ensure that investors are adequately protected and have access to the information they need.
The new rules could provide greater clarity to the market, facilitate capital formation and strengthen investor protection while allowing room for innovation, the SEC said in one of the drafts on the offer and sale of crypto assets.
Bill in Congress could change the equation
These regulatory preparations came to the agenda at a time when the bill on the crypto market structure was being discussed in the US Congress. If the bill in question is accepted, it is expected that a significant part of the supervision and sanction authority over the sector will be shifted from the SEC to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Atkins said in March that the SEC would move forward with an in-house transition mechanism to clarify crypto regulations. However, he also gave the message that if the Congress passes a law, the choice of the legislature will be decisive in the final framework.
Criticism and political debate grows
The SEC’s approach to crypto during the Trump era has been met with harsh criticism in some quarters. In a letter sent in January, some Democratic Party lawmakers claimed that names associated with some crypto companies that previously faced sanctions or were caught in regulatory scrutiny provided financial benefits. References were also made to companies such as Binance, Coinbase, Ripple Labs and Kraken in the letter.
Three Democratic House members argued that SEC Chairman Paul Atkins’ statements that most crypto tokens are not securities create a gap in enforcement and that US investors are not adequately protected, despite federal court decisions that some tokens are considered securities.
Lawmakers argued that the lack of consequences for actors alleged to have violated securities laws created an enforcement gap in the industry. These criticisms have also deepened the debate in Washington about the political implications of the SEC’s more flexible approach to the crypto market.
Trump acknowledges political side of crypto interest
Donald Trump said he was interested in the crypto space partly for political reasons while answering questions from reporters on Monday. Trump, who described Bitcoin as a fraud after his first presidential term, had previously kept his distance from cryptocurrencies. As the 2024 election process approached, it started to contact industry representatives and defend this technology more frequently in public.
The SEC operates as the US federal government’s primary agency overseeing capital markets. The question of which product related to crypto assets will be considered a security and which institution will be authorized are among the most controversial topics on the regulatory agenda in Washington in recent years.
