New SEC Chair Criticizes Agency’s Past Tactics and Charts New Path for Crypto

SEC Chair Paul Atkins has outlined a shift in how the agency plans to handle crypto and digital assets, calling for a more open and transparent approach. Speaking at the SEC Speaks conference on May 19, Atkins criticized past enforcement-heavy tactics and emphasized the need for clear rules and active engagement with the industry.

Good to know

• Atkins wants SEC registrants to handle both securities and non-securities in one system.
• The agency plans to issue staff-level guidance before formal crypto rules are in place.
• Atkins called past enforcement-first behavior a barrier to innovation and dialogue.

In his speech, Atkins said the SEC had fallen behind the pace of crypto innovation and acknowledged that market participants had often been discouraged from engagement after being invited to discussions, only to later face subpoenas.

“It is a new day at the SEC,” Atkins said, confirming that staff across policy divisions have been directed to begin drafting new crypto-related rules. Until those rules are finalized, the agency will issue interim guidance through staff-level statements to help fill current regulatory gaps.

He clarified that these staff views are not official regulations but can offer useful direction. “While the views of the staff are not rules or regulations of the Commission, they can provide useful insights for the public. Ultimately, the Commission is, of course, responsible and must itself squarely address these issues to ensure that the public has clear rules of the road,” Atkins explained.

As part of broader reforms, Atkins proposed that SEC-registered entities be allowed to custody and trade both securities and non-securities under a single regulatory umbrella. He argued that this could reduce costs for investors while bringing non-securities into a more regulated federal structure.

“I would like the Commission to allow SEC registrants to custody and trade both securities and non-securities under one roof,” Atkins stated. “Enabling this reality could reduce costs for investors while allowing non-security trading to enter a regulated environment at the federal level expeditiously.”

He described this step as a move toward the future possibility of a “super-app,” thanking Commissioner Hester Peirce, the Crypto Task Force, and Trading and Markets staff for helping push this change forward.