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ARTICLE · 26 NOVEMBER 2025

SEC Chair Outlines "Project Crypto" Framework For Digital Asset Regulation

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On November 12, SEC Chair Paul Atkins delivered remarks at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia describing the SEC's direction for digital asset oversight under "Project Crypto."

United StatesTechnology
A.J. Dhaliwal
A.J. Dhaliwal
Mehul Madia
Mehul Madia
Maxwell Earp-Thomas
Maxwell Earp-Thomas
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On November 12, SEC Chair Paul Atkins delivered remarks at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia describing the SEC's direction for digital asset oversight under "Project Crypto." The speech previewed a forthcoming "token taxonomy" grounded in the Supreme Court's Howey investment-contract analysis and emphasized that most tokens currently trading are, in his view, not securities under existing law.

In describing the next phase of Project Crypto, Chair Atkins highlighted the SEC's ongoing effort to distinguish among different types of digital assets using an approach tied to economic reality. He reiterated that while some tokens may initially be sold through an investment contract, that relationship can end once the issuer's essential managerial efforts cease. He also voiced support for congressional efforts to establish a federal market-structure statute and previewed potential staff recommendations for a tailored offering regime for crypto assets associated

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