SEC's Comment Window Closes on Crypto Rules—140 Voices In, Clarity Still Out 📜

The US Securities and Exchange Commission closed its 60-day public comment period Tuesday on "Regulation Crypto Assets," a set of digital asset rules proposed in August that the agency described as a "clear and fit-for-purpose framework for certain investment contracts involving crypto assets." The SEC's push for the framework followed Congress's failure to pass legislation establishing a unified regulatory structure for cryptocurrency across the federal government, including the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act.

During the comment period, the agency received approximately 140 submissions from interest groups and individuals, including six anonymous responses. The proposed rules include a safe harbor that would prevent token issuers from being classified as offering "investment contracts," along with exemptions for companies conducting offerings up to a specified amount.

The Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) Crypto Alliance, an organization established to help entities implement the EU's digital asset framework, broadly endorsed the SEC's proposed disclosure requirements. The alliance recommended specific amendments urging the agency to more precisely define "concepts and data structures specific to crypto assets and the disclosure requirements."

SkyBridge Capital founder Anthony Scaramucci also voiced support for the SEC's proposed crypto rules, stating that the digital asset regulations responded to "organic adoption" and "represent a return to the Commission's proper role," without referencing congressional inaction on the CLARITY Act. Some legal experts have suggested that agency-issued rules can be more easily overturned than legislation passed by Congress.

Both agencies with jurisdiction over portions of the crypto industry, the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, remain understaffed at the leadership level, a condition that continues to draw scrutiny from lawmakers including House Finance panel members who have said regulator actions on crypto "fall short" of the CLARITY bill.