Atkins says SEC crypto proposal aims to bring innovators back to US

The SEC’s proposed crypto regulatory framework is consistent with the CLARITY Act and aims to reshore innovators who moved offshore to develop products and raise capital, Chairman Paul Atkins said in an interview with ‘Mornings with Maria.’

“[Our proposed regulation] is our most historic step yet to try to bring reality to the president’s call to make the United States a crypto capital world,” Atkins noted.

The Senate is set to vote on the CLARITY Act on Sept. 15. Atkins said he hopes the measure will pass and ultimately reach President Donald Trump for his signature.

Atkins said the SEC proposal was built to work alongside the CLARITY Act and includes exemptions related to fundraising and other conditions. The agency is taking public comments now so as to advance rules consistent with the legislation if Congress approves it.

The SEC chief argued that the previous administration’s policies drove innovators offshore to develop products and raise money. Since US investors can move capital anywhere online, he said the US should provide a legal framework that allows them to invest and participate at home.

Asked how far the SEC could proceed if Congress fails to advance the CLARITY Act, Atkins reiterated that the agency has authority under existing laws to advance the proposal even if Congress does not act, including through exemptions for fundraising and other activities.

However, he said statutory backing is ultimately necessary to ensure the rules remain stable, sustainable and lasting as future SEC commissions could otherwise revise them through the notice-and-comment process.

“Our goal is to get them adopted to get them taken up by the industry so that you have a course of dealing and practice and then what we really do need though is statutory grounding of this to make sure that it is sustainable and lasting into the future,” he explained.