‘Crypto markets have been languishing in SEC limbo’

In one of his first speeches since becoming chair of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in April, Paul Atkins addressed some of the regulatory concerns around the cryptocurrency industry.
In prepared remarks for a May 19 speech, Atkins said it was a “new day” for the crypto industry under the current leadership of the SEC. He suggested that the financial regulator would be more open to “adapt to and accommodate new developments” while still abiding by its statutes.
“The crypto markets have been languishing in SEC limbo for years,” said Atkins, adding:
“While I have directed Commission staff across our policy Divisions to begin drafting rule proposals related to crypto, the staff continue to ‘clear the brush’ through staff-level statements.”
Even before Atkins stepped into the role of SEC chair, the commission’s actions under Donald Trump suggested that it would radically depart from the direction of former chair Gary Gensler. In 2025, the SEC has dropped several investigations and enforcement actions against crypto companies and issued guidance on memecoins and security tokens.
Related: CFTC commissioner to leave agency on May 31
“As I begin my tenure as Chairman, I can tell you that we are getting back to our roots of promoting, rather than stifling, innovation,” said Atkins. “The markets innovate, and the SEC should not be in the business of telling them to stand still.” Atkins’ remarks came as US lawmakers considered draft legislation to establish a regulatory structure for crypto markets. The proposed bill, moving through the House of Representatives, could clarify the roles the SEC and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) have in overseeing and regulating digital assets. Until the legislation passes Congress and is signed into law, the SEC’s rules and guidelines over crypto could face pushback from affected parties. The SEC chair has given opening remarks and overseen the commission’s roundtable events, discussing regulatory issues surrounding digital assets and blockchain. The next event, scheduled for June 9, will cover decentralized finance. Magazine: SEC’s U-turn on crypto leaves key questions unanswered
Looking to Congress for market structure
Bitcoin (BTC) $ 118,040.00
Ethereum (ETH) $ 2,972.67
XRP (XRP) $ 2.82
Tether (USDT) $ 1.00
BNB (BNB) $ 694.13
Solana (SOL) $ 162.61
USDC (USDC) $ 0.999874
Dogecoin (DOGE) $ 0.202213
TRON (TRX) $ 0.305184
Lido Staked Ether (STETH) $ 2,971.58
Cardano (ADA) $ 0.724445
Hyperliquid (HYPE) $ 46.94
Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) $ 117,853.00
Stellar (XLM) $ 0.395170
Wrapped stETH (WSTETH) $ 3,567.69
Sui (SUI) $ 3.44
Chainlink (LINK) $ 15.33
Bitcoin Cash (BCH) $ 520.57
Avalanche (AVAX) $ 20.84
Hedera (HBAR) $ 0.203612
LEO Token (LEO) $ 9.06
Wrapped eETH (WEETH) $ 3,184.51
Shiba Inu (SHIB) $ 0.000013
Toncoin (TON) $ 3.01
USDS (USDS) $ 0.999706
WETH (WETH) $ 2,974.41
Litecoin (LTC) $ 93.44
WhiteBIT Coin (WBT) $ 46.67
Binance Bridged USDT (BNB Smart Chain) (BSC-USD) $ 0.999985
Monero (XMR) $ 331.88
Polkadot (DOT) $ 3.99
Coinbase Wrapped BTC (CBBTC) $ 117,986.00
Ethena USDe (USDE) $ 1.00
Pepe (PEPE) $ 0.000012
Bitget Token (BGB) $ 4.44
Uniswap (UNI) $ 8.50
Aave (AAVE) $ 304.15
Bittensor (TAO) $ 393.14
Dai (DAI) $ 0.999878
Pi Network (PI) $ 0.470916
Cronos (CRO) $ 0.104909
Aptos (APT) $ 4.89
Ethena Staked USDe (SUSDE) $ 1.18
NEAR Protocol (NEAR) $ 2.52
OKB (OKB) $ 48.58
Internet Computer (ICP) $ 5.37
Jito Staked SOL (JITOSOL) $ 197.39
Ondo (ONDO) $ 0.896167
BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) $ 1.00
Ethereum Classic (ETC) $ 18.46
sUSDS (SUSDS) $ 1.06
Kaspa (KAS) $ 0.085984
USD1 (USD1) $ 1.00
Cosmos Hub (ATOM) $ 4.69
Mantle (MNT) $ 0.639361
Ethena (ENA) $ 0.337450
POL (ex-MATIC) (POL) $ 0.235014
VeChain (VET) $ 0.024414
Arbitrum (ARB) $ 0.404170
Official Trump (TRUMP) $ 9.87
Algorand (ALGO) $ 0.223237
Gate (GT) $ 16.19
Fasttoken (FTN) $ 4.45
Render (RENDER) $ 3.68
Sei (SEI) $ 0.337142
Artificial Superintelligence Alliance (FET) $ 0.705938
Binance-Peg WETH (WETH) $ 2,975.14
Worldcoin (WLD) $ 1.03
Filecoin (FIL) $ 2.58
Lombard Staked BTC (LBTC) $ 117,728.00
Bonk (BONK) $ 0.000022
Sky (SKY) $ 0.079039
Jupiter Perpetuals Liquidity Provider Token (JLP) $ 4.73
Binance Staked SOL (BNSOL) $ 172.53
SPX6900 (SPX) $ 1.60
KuCoin (KCS) $ 11.47
Jupiter (JUP) $ 0.485638
USDtb (USDTB) $ 1.00
First Digital USD (FDUSD) $ 0.997648
Pudgy Penguins (PENGU) $ 0.022683
Kelp DAO Restaked ETH (RSETH) $ 3,113.88
Rocket Pool ETH (RETH) $ 3,387.69
USDT0 (USDT0) $ 1.00
Celestia (TIA) $ 1.90
NEXO (NEXO) $ 1.28
Story (IP) $ 4.40
Fartcoin (FARTCOIN) $ 1.25
Injective (INJ) $ 12.70
Flare (FLR) $ 0.016911
XDC Network (XDC) $ 0.072001
Sonic (S) $ 0.359290
Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL) $ 1.76
Stacks (STX) $ 0.750219
Optimism (OP) $ 0.655105
Mantle Staked Ether (METH) $ 3,188.37
StakeWise Staked ETH (OSETH) $ 3,125.52
MemeCore (M) $ 0.699829
Polygon Bridged USDT (Polygon) (USDT) $ 1.00
Renzo Restaked ETH (EZETH) $ 3,132.53
Binance Bridged USDC (BNB Smart Chain) (USDC) $ 0.999878