The SEC is no longer waiting on Congress. The U.S. regulator has just unveiled its own regulatory framework for digital assets, dubbed “Regulation Crypto Assets,” offering token issuers concrete legal pathways to raise capital in the United States.
The move comes as the Clarity Act — the legislation meant to definitively clarify the legal status of cryptocurrencies — remains stalled in Congress, repeatedly derailed by political gridlock.
With regulators pushing ahead independently and lawmakers treading water, the U.S. crypto regulatory landscape is entering a decisive phase.
Two exemptions, one safe harbor: what the SEC is actually proposing
The SEC‘s proposal, made public on Tuesday, August 18, 2026, carves out two exemptions within the Securities Act of 1933. The first allows a one-time fundraise of up to $5 million over a four-year period, with no standard registration requirement. The second permits raises of up to $75 million over 12 months, but comes with mandatory financial statements and ongoing reporting obligations.
In both cases, issuers must publish narrative disclosures — explanatory documents aimed at investors, detailing the project and its associated risks. This baseline transparency requirement echoes traditional prospectuses, adapted to the realities of blockchain projects.
The framework also introduces a conditional safe harbor: once an issuer has completed — or definitively abandoned — the managerial work promised to investors, its token would no longer be considered subject to an investment contract. In other words, it would fall outside the legal definition of a “security.” This is precisely the provision that has drawn the most interest from the industry, as it offers a clear exit from the securities regime for projects that are sufficiently decentralized.
SEC Chair Paul Atkins presented the initiative as a further step toward “bringing crypto asset market innovation back” to the United States, while leaving it to Congress to establish a lasting legislative framework. The public comment window will remain open for 60 days following publication in the Federal Register.
Clarity Act blocked: Congress misses its moment as regulators step in
The U.S. legislative timeline on crypto has suffered yet another setback. Supporters of the Clarity Act had been hoping for a vote before Congress’s summer recess, but the bill was pushed back to September after several Democrats rejected the latest version of the text. Republican Senator Cynthia Lummis openly accused certain lawmakers of deliberately obstructing the legislation.
This political deadlock has created a vacuum that regulators are moving quickly to fill. CFTC Chair Michael Selig has already announced that he will press ahead with his own rulemaking process, with or without the Clarity Act, targeting finalization of the rules before the current administration’s term ends. This institutional race against the clock highlights the fragmentation of the U.S. regulatory landscape.
The SEC‘s proposal builds on the interpretive guidance published last March regarding the application of securities laws to cryptocurrencies. It does not replace legislation — it fills a gap while lawmakers make up their minds. For token issuers operating or looking to operate in the U.S. market, this interim framework nonetheless represents a tangible step forward: partial rules are better than a complete grey area. The crypto industry, meanwhile, is watching closely to see whether this dual SEC-CFTC push will ultimately converge into a coherent regime — or whether regulatory fragmentation will itself become the problem.
