SEC Chairman Paul Atkins Says SEC is Implementing Trump's Agenda
SEC Chairman Paul Atkins stated that the Trump administration has prioritized financial leadership and innovation since taking office, and the SEC is implementing this agenda; his remarks were made at a White House conference on cryptocurrency, finance, and technology.
The SEC recently proposed the "Regulation Crypto Assets" rules, which aim to establish customized exemptions for certain token issuances: early projects can raise up to $5 million in a single round within four years, and eligible issuers can raise up to $75 million every 12 months; the rules are still in the public comment phase and have not yet taken effect.
The proposed framework requires issuers to disclose information about the project, team, token functions, use of funds, risks, and key development work, while retaining enforcement authority against fraud and manipulation. The goal is to shift token financing from case-by-case enforcement and legal opinion reliance to a predefined financing cap and an executable information disclosure path.
Atkins also promoted the "Project Crypto" initiative, aimed at modernizing securities regulations applicable to blockchain markets and studying a token classification system to more clearly distinguish between securities and non-securities based on the Howey test.
The policy mix at the White House conference includes SEC token financing rules, CFTC Innovation Advisory Committee, congressional advancement of the CLARITY Act, and discussions on compliance for cryptocurrency derivatives. The SEC can adjust issuance and trading requirements within its jurisdiction through rulemaking, but the clear division of responsibilities between the SEC and CFTC in market structure still requires congressional legislation or agency coordination.
In terms of market mechanisms, the direct buyers of the proposed rules are token projects, exchanges, custodians, and legal and auditing service providers seeking compliant fundraising in the U.S.; transparent disclosures, proof of fund usage, and verifiable development progress will become part of the financing costs. Short-term capital typically trades on expectations of "regulatory warming," flowing into mainstream tokens and U.S. compliant platforms; long-term beneficiaries will be financial infrastructures that can meet registration, customer protection, information disclosure, and market monitoring requirements, rather than all crypto assets.
Source: Public Information
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The SEC's regulatory path for the cryptocurrency industry has previously focused on enforcement cases. In 2019, Telegram's Gram issuance was blocked by the court, in 2020 the SEC sued Ripple, and in 2023 it sued Coinbase and Binance, with the core dispute being whether token sales, staking, and trading platform functions constitute unregistered securities activities. Atkins' shift to rulemaking aims to rewrite the uncertainty of "operating first, being sued later" into a system design of "disclosing first, financing along a path".
The change in capital pathways is first reflected in the legal risk premium. In the past, project teams often avoided U.S. regulation through offshore foundations, SAFTs, private placement restrictions, and geographical isolation of exchanges; if the $5 million startup exemption, $75 million financing exemption, and safe harbor are ultimately implemented, capital can enter projects in the U.S. through white paper-style disclosures, financial reports, and ongoing information updates. Legal, auditing, custodial, KYC, and issuance technology services will shift from peripheral costs to financing infrastructure.
This is similar to the logic of the 2012 JOBS Act establishing Regulation Crowdfunding and expanding Regulation A+: regulation exchanges lower issuance thresholds in exchange for financing limits, disclosure obligations, and anti-fraud rules. The difference is that tokens will continue to circulate, and the development team has a direct impact on whether the network matures, so crypto rules must address how to separate "investment contracts at the time of fundraising" from "assets that can be independently used after network maturity," rather than just simplifying a one-time issuance.
At its core, this is about regulatory change. Financial leadership does not arise from regulatory relaxation itself, but from predictable boundaries of responsibility that reduce uncertainty in capital allocation. If the rules ultimately unify asset classification, fundraising, trading, and custody standards, the U.S. could attract more issuances, order flows, and financial services capital; if SEC rules continue to conflict with CFTC jurisdiction, state-level licensing, or congressional legislation, policy slogans will still be offset by compliance friction.
ABAB News · Cognitive Laws
Innovation needs space, capital needs boundaries
Enforcement solves cases, rules create markets
Regulatory relaxation brings traffic, clear responsibilities bring funds