(Reuters) – The new leadership of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said on Tuesday it has created a task force to develop a regulatory framework for crypto assets, in the first major step by President Donald Trump’s new administration to overhaul crypto policy to review.
Trump, who campaigned on the promise of becoming a “crypto president,” has vowed to undo an industry crackdown under former President Joe Biden’s SEC, which has sued multiple crypto companies, including Coinbase (NASDAQ:) and Kraken, because they claimed they had broken the rules.
The companies have denied these allegations, arguing that the SEC rules are inappropriate for cryptocurrencies and that it is unclear when a crypto token could qualify as a security and therefore be subject to SEC supervision. The industry has been calling on the SEC for years to create clear cryptocurrency rules.
Tuesday’s move by Republican Commissioner Mark Uyeda, whom Trump appointed acting chairman of the SEC on Monday, and fellow Republican Commissioner Hester Peirce, marks the first policy victory for the crypto industry under the new administration.
“The focus of the Task Force will be on assisting the Commission in drawing clear regulatory lines, providing realistic pathways for registration, establishing sensible disclosure frameworks and judiciously deploying enforcement resources,” Uyeda’s office said in the announcement.
Reuters reported this month that Uyeda and Peirce were poised to initiate a review of Trump’s crypto policy, including kicking off the regulatory process. Trump is also expected to soon issue executive orders that would reduce oversight of the crypto industry and help promote the adoption of digital assets, Reuters and other media reported.
“We are encouraged by this meaningful first step toward real policy solutions and ending the era of regulatory enforcement of the past,” said Jonathan Jachym, global head of policy at Kraken, in an emailed statement. “We look forward to accelerating our policy engagement… to create regulatory clarity.”
hit a new all-time high of $109,071 on Monday amid investor excitement over the new crypto-friendly government.
The task force will also help lawmakers craft crypto-related legislation while coordinating with other federal agencies, such as the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, as well as state and foreign agencies, the SEC added.
A top executive at Coinbase also applauded the move.
“We have been saying for years that we should help by drawing up rules for crypto. For the past four years, the answer has been a resounding ‘no,'” the company’s Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal said in a telephone interview. “It’s a new day.”
