A new day at the SEC: Paul Atkins’ playbook for on‑chain markets

The SEC’s new chair, Paul Atkins, is repositioning the agency from “regulation by enforcement” toward rulemaking, supervised pilots, and cross-agency coordination. In a University of Wyoming fireside chat, he framed the shift as practical: clear paths for compliant market activity, plus flexible tools the agency can iterate as technology changes.

It is a new day… We’re about innovation.

What the reset changes

Atkins acknowledged the prior cycle of debanking pressures and litigation and said the agency’s posture has moved on. He anchored the pivot in SEC history: when trading volumes overwhelmed paper processing in the 1960s, the Commission worked with industry to stand up DTCC and modernize market plumbing. The message: the SEC has enabled innovation before and can do so again – through targeted rulemaking and exemptive relief rather than ad-hoc crackdowns.

He paired that with “spring cleaning” on legacy issues: lowering frictions in IPOs, simplifying disclosure where it has become duplicative, and addressing litigation incentives that deter listings. The aim is to make public markets attractive again while opening structured paths for on‑chain activity.

Project Crypto: from posture to program

Atkins described Project Crypto as the SEC’s operational plan to onshore digital-asset activity and update infrastructure for 24/7/365 markets. The effort runs alongside weekly coordination in the President’s Working Group. Expect three phases: staff guidance first, then exemptive relief and pilot programs under supervision, followed by formal rulemaking once models are proven. The priority is interoperability with existing venues, not a clean‑sheet rebuild.

We have to future‑proof the rules of the road.

The legal stance: tokens, schemes, and the decentralization debate

Perhaps the most significant shift involves how the SEC will analyze tokens under securities law. Atkins called “decentralization” a distraction from the statute and case law. The Howey test evaluates the overall scheme and promises made to investors; it does not deem a token a security by its mere existence.

Decentralization… is a red herring.

He added that under Howey the Commission will assess the scheme around a token, not presume the token is a security on its face.

Practically, this means the agency will focus on the package around a token – marketing, rights, expectations, and issuer conduct – rather than treating all tokens as presumptive securities. The intent is to enable cleaner legal opinions, reduce litigation over gray areas, and create predictable routes for listings, ATS activity, and custody when a token is part of a compliant program.

Market‑structure priorities

Atkins wants market architecture to reflect how firms operate today. He floated a “super‑app” model: multi‑asset platforms that can handle securities, commodities, and stablecoins under coordinated oversight. He also endorsed regulatory competition as a disciplining force, pointing to the banking system’s mix of federal and state charters as an example of flexibility that can be adapted without diluting standards.

The near‑term work is straightforward: modernize ATS and exchange pathways, clarify custody expectations for on‑chain assets, and permit supervised pilots that test real‑time settlement loops while preserving investor protection.

Stablecoins are part of the foundation

Atkins cast stablecoins as core market infrastructure, not an outlier. He praised the GENIUS Act for establishing reserves, redemption, and BSA coverage for payment stablecoin issuers, and he highlighted ongoing coordination with the Treasury. In his framing, tokenized cash legs can support faster, more resilient post‑trade processes – especially if settlement can run continuously instead of five days a week with end‑of‑day money movement.

What changes for builders and institutions

If the program executes, two changes follow. First, firms should see controlled ways to launch and scale: clearer token analyses, pilot approvals for on‑chain trading and settlement, and pragmatic custody standards. Second, the agency will rely more on disclosure and iterative guidance than on one-off lawsuits.

For institutions, the practical test will be whether pilots and exemptive orders reduce capital and operational costs in settlement and reconciliation. If so, activity will migrate on‑shore; if not, the legal clarity still lowers risk for incremental adoption.

Open questions and execution risks

Harmonization with the CFTC and bank regulators remains essential for any multi‑asset “super‑app.” Circuit‑level differences in case law will persist. Exemptive authority is broad but not limitless; some elements will still require statute. And always‑on markets raise supervision and investor‑protection questions that the rulebook must handle cleanly.

What to watch next

• Initial staff bulletins on token analyses, ATS parameters, and pilot eligibility.
• The first Project Crypto pilot approvals supervised on‑chain settlement.
• Movement on follow‑on legislation (e.g., a “Clarity Act”) and any joint SEC–CFTC frameworks.

Atkins’ approach is clear: enable lawful experimentation, publish usable rules, and maintain flexibility to adapt as technology evolves. The signal for the industry is to prepare real proposals – use‑case pilots with measurable cost or risk reductions – rather than positioning through litigation alone.