The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) under Chair Paul Atkins is implementing a significant shift in crypto regulatory approach, moving away from the aggressive enforcement tactics that characterized the previous administration. In an interview with the Financial Times, Atkins stated that crypto firms will now receive preliminary notices of technical violations before facing formal enforcement actions.
"You can't just suddenly come and bash down their door," Atkins emphasized. "Businesses can now expect to first receive a preliminary notice." He suggested companies should be given up to six months to address issues before enforcement is considered.
This represents a marked departure from the approach under former SEC Chair Gary Gensler, who frequently used lawsuits as the primary regulatory tool. During Gensler's tenure, the SEC launched legal battles against high-profile firms including Ripple Labs, Terraform Labs, Binance, Coinbase, and Kraken, actions that cost the industry billions in legal fees.
Atkins criticized many of those actions as lacking legal grounding and predictability, noting the previous approach would "shoot first and then ask questions later." Since taking office in April, Atkins has led the SEC to establish a dedicated Crypto Task Force and has dropped several ongoing enforcement actions inherited from the Gensler era.
In another key policy shift, Atkins pushed back against Gensler's interpretation that most cryptocurrencies are securities, stating that most tokens do not fall under securities laws. He voiced support for trading tokenized stocks and bonds that carry the same legal rights as their underlying instruments.
The changes reflect a broader effort to rebuild trust with the industry and promote regulatory clarity, potentially signaling a less adversarial relationship between U.S. regulators and the digital asset sector.