Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Paul Atkins has designated crypto regulation as the agency’s “job one,” acknowledging that the United States is roughly “10 years behind” in establishing a proper regulatory framework for the burgeoning industry.
Speaking at the DC Fintech Week event at Amazon HQ on Wednesday, Atkins vowed to fast-track U.S. crypto progress and build a robust framework designed to entice industry participants who may have left the country to return.
“I like to say that we’re the securities and innovation commission now,” Atkins stated, emphasizing a shift in the SEC’s approach. He confirmed that the agency is now working full-time on digital asset regulation to enable innovation to flourish.
Atkins noted that the past regulatory approach to the digital asset industry had been “somewhat disingenuous,” but stressed that the situation has fundamentally changed. The SEC plans to introduce an “innovation exemption” to permit experimentation with new ideas.
“We at SEC with respect to our statutes have pretty broad authority for exemptions to be made, and so I think we can be… very forward-leaning in that in order to accommodate new ideas,” he said. He added that the free market would ultimately determine the success of these concepts, stating, “And if the ideas are not good, the free market reaction would tell.”
He also highlighted the benefit of having “pro-crypto executives” at the SEC, such as “crypto mama,” whose understanding is helping the agency embrace new technologies.
When questioned about tokenization and real-world assets, Atkins replied that it is a critical focus because blockchain technology is the most exciting aspect of the crypto space.
“Tokenization is not necessarily the numerous crypto coins as many would come and go, but I think putting things on-chain presents huge potential benefits for the financial industry and elsewhere,” he explained.
He concluded that the inherent transparency of blockchain makes it an “incredibly powerful” tool for solving compliance issues within the financial sector.
