SEC signals it will act alone on crypto rules if Congress stalls
Regulation & Gov ·
Chair Paul Atkins says the agency is prepared to issue its own crypto regulations should the CLARITY Act fail to pass, while stating a preference for legislative action.
Atkins made the comments amid ongoing uncertainty over the CLARITY Act, the market-structure bill meant to clarify when digital assets fall under SEC versus CFTC jurisdiction, according to wublockchain.xyz. The statement positions the SEC to move on rulemaking independently rather than wait indefinitely for Congress to finish the legislation, even as Atkins reiterated that he would rather see lawmakers deliver a statutory framework, a point also noted on x.com.
The remark fits into a broader pattern under Atkins' tenure of pushing the SEC toward rulemaking-driven clarity for digital assets rather than relying solely on enforcement actions. His agenda has already included a formal token taxonomy effort, discussion of safe harbor concepts for token offerings, and support for congressional market-structure efforts including the CLARITY Act itself. The agency has also floated an "innovation exemption" that would open the door to onchain trading of tokenized securities, part of a wider push described as moving U.S. markets onchain.
The willingness to act without Congress also reflects coordination underway between the SEC and CFTC, with Atkins describing an end to turf disputes between the two regulators over definitions, oversight, and data sharing. That cooperation has included Atkins backing CFTC Chairman Michael Selig amid concerns that the CFTC lacks resources to oversee both prediction markets and expanding crypto oversight duties.
Not every reaction to Atkins' approach has been favorable. Senator Elizabeth Warren has accused him of misleading Congress over declines in enforcement actions, raising investor-protection concerns, and the SEC's enforcement chief resigned after clashing with Atkins over softened settlements involving Justin Sun and Musk. Those tensions underscore that Atkins' pivot toward a more permissive framework remains contested even within the agency's own ranks.
What remains unresolved is whether Congress will pass the CLARITY Act before the SEC moves ahead with its own rules, and what specific unilateral measures the agency would pursue in that scenario. Also unclear is how any SEC-authored rules would interact with the CFTC's parallel authority, and whether critics' concerns about weakened enforcement will factor into how those rules are drafted.