The Jito Foundation, a key validator and protocol developer on the Solana blockchain, has announced it will bring its core operations back to the United States, establishing a US-based legal entity. This marks a significant reversal for the organization, which was originally founded in 2021 and launched its foundation with registration in the Cayman Islands in 2023.
The foundation cited a dramatically improved US regulatory environment as the primary catalyst for its return. Jito Labs co-founder and CEO Lucas Bruder stated that "American crypto founders were pushed offshore" by the previous administration, referencing "Operation Chokepoint 2.0" where banks and vendors refused to work with crypto firms. He described an era where "Every product decision carried real but unquantifiable legal risk from a hostile and capricious regulatory agency gone rogue."
Key factors enabling the return include the changing leadership at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) following Gary Gensler's departure in November 2024 and the passage of the GENIUS Act in July 2025. This legislative shift has created a more favorable climate for blockchain projects. The move follows a trend of other major crypto entities like Polygon Labs, Circle, Galaxy Digital, Coinbase, and Binance re-engaging with the US market.
The foundation plans a formal relaunch with a celebratory event in Washington, D.C., on January 8, 2026. This return signifies a strategic shift; during previous market cycles, Jito actively avoided the US, even excluding US-based wallets from its JTO token airdrop in late 2023. The foundation now aims to boost Solana's mainstream adoption reputation within the US.
Jito is the fourth-largest protocol on Solana, with $1.85 billion in total value locked (TVL). It is a critical infrastructure provider, known for its JitoSOL liquid staking token and its role in creating "fair inclusion blocks" through its BAM platform for neutral block building. The platform is also a major source of revenue from transaction priority tips and is used by validators to accelerate transactions.
The announcement comes amidst a challenging market period for its associated tokens. At the time of the news, the native JTO token was trading near an all-time low of $0.34, while SOL retreated to $123.54. The foundation expressed confidence in operating within the US despite an ongoing class action lawsuit against Solana, noting its services have been neutral, though its tools have been cited in discussions about front-running attacks on the network.
Jito's return is also strategically linked to its ambitions for a JitoSOL ETF, for which it filed an S-1 form with the SEC in August 2025—a process typically more accessible to US-based organizations.
