U.S. SEC Chair: Will Promote On-Chain Capital Market Reforms, Clarify the Boundaries of Digital Asset Securities

Odaily Planet Daily News: U.S. SEC Chair Paul S. Atkins stated during a speech at the 2026 Reagan National Economic Forum that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is advancing regulatory reforms for a "New Era of the SEC," with a focus on modernizing digital asset regulation, promoting the development of on-chain capital markets, and supporting the U.S. as a "global crypto hub."

Paul Atkins criticized the SEC's previous "regulatory hostility" towards the digital asset industry, stating that much crypto innovation was forced overseas as a result. He said that with the support of the Trump administration, the SEC has launched "Project Crypto" and is collaborating with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to promote the on-chain movement of market infrastructure and the harmonization of crypto regulations. The SEC has recently clarified which digital assets are securities and which are not, and is advancing innovative exemption mechanisms for "tokenized listed securities," while also studying how on-chain trading systems can fit within the existing regulatory framework.

Furthermore, Paul Atkins emphasized that the SEC will reduce "over-disclosure" and regulatory burdens, promoting a "Make IPOs Great Again" reform. This includes lowering compliance costs for listed companies, increasing IPO flexibility, and formally proposing to revoke the climate disclosure rules introduced during the previous administration. The future of U.S. capital markets should be built on the foundation of "free markets and innovation," and the role of the regulator should be to provide clear rules and legal certainty, not to suppress technological development.