SEC Weighs Regulatory Runway For Decentralising Crypto Projects

The US SEC is considering rules that could let crypto projects raise capital before decentralising, potentially giving open-source blockchain ecosystems a clearer path beyond securities oversight.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will consider its first formal crypto rulemaking on August 14, potentially creating a regulatory pathway for crypto projects to raise capital without full securities registration.

The proposed “Regulation Crypto” framework could provide developers with a regulatory runway to build towards decentralisation, with a key provision potentially allowing projects to exit SEC oversight once founders are no longer actively managing them. This could be significant for open-source crypto ecosystems, where publicly inspectable code, distributed development, and community participation can support decentralisation.

SEC Chair Paul Atkins has advocated an exemption-based approach. In March, he said a startup exemption “could last (say up to four years) and provide developers with a regulatory runway” to reach decentralisation. The SEC has not disclosed proposed fundraising thresholds.

The move follows the Senate’s failure to advance the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act before its August recess. TD Cowen analyst Jaret Seiberg said, “We view this as the first of several rulemakings the SEC will undertake to provide regulatory certainty for crypto assets after the Senate failed before the August recess to advance the Clarity Act,”

Unlike staff guidance on staking, airdrops, and mining, a final rule could provide a more durable framework. However, Regulation Crypto remains only a proposal at this stage and could take months to finalise.

The SEC is also working with the CFTC on a crypto taxonomy to determine regulatory jurisdiction. The Clarity Act could return in September, although prediction-market traders currently assign it a 22% chance of passing this year.