The SEC places crypto regulation, IPOs and private markets at the heart of its 2026 agenda. Its president Paul Atkins wants to clarify the custody of digital assets, regulate tokenized securities and facilitate the raising of capital. Washington wants to modernize its markets without abandoning investor protection.
In brief
- The SEC places crypto among its regulatory priorities for 2026.
- She wants to regulate custody, fundraising and tokenized securities.
- IPOs and access to private markets complete the roadmap.
Crypto: The SEC wants to bring innovation back to the United States
The first priority concerns crypto. The SEC wants to create more readable rules for companies that raise capital with digital assets. This line extends the crypto project, launched to modernize the American framework.
Paul Atkins believes that the United States must once again become the center of gravity for financial innovation. The objective is no longer just to sanction after the fact. The SEC wants to set rules before products leave American territory.
This approach marks a break with years of confrontation. Crypto players have long been calling for a predictable framework. They criticized the old model for transforming each launch into a legal gamble. The second crypto priority concerns the custody and trading of tokenized securities. The SEC wants to clarify how intermediaries can hold these assets and facilitate their onchain trading.
This point is central. Tokenized securities represent stocks, bonds or fund shares on blockchain. They do not go beyond securities law, even if they circulate on a crypto infrastructure.
The SEC had already reiterated this line with its tokenized securities. The new agenda now seeks to transform this doctrine into rules more usable by platforms, brokers and custodians. The subject goes beyond classic cryptos. If Wall Street adopts tokenization, the SEC will need to regulate markets that can operate faster, sometimes longer, with new settlement and custody risks.
IPOs are back in American strategy
The second big priority on the agenda concerns IPOs. Paul Atkins wants to reverse the decline in the number of companies listed in the United States. Fewer IPOs, he says, mean less access for ordinary savers to the growth of big companies. The SEC therefore wants to reduce certain compliance burdens, while retaining essential protections.
This reform does not directly concern crypto, but it touches the same problem: access to capital. Innovative companies must be able to finance themselves without remaining locked into private markets. The regulator also wants to make publication obligations more effective. The challenge will be to simplify without weakening transparency. A more accessible IPO should not become a less readable IPO.
The third priority targets private markets. The SEC wants to make it easier for retail investors to participate in certain assets previously reserved for wealthy insiders. This opening could change the structure of American financing. Many companies are staying private longer, depriving some of the public of their pre-IPO growth.
The SEC, however, promises safeguards. Private markets are less transparent, less liquid and more difficult to value. The risks are often higher there than in public markets. For the crypto sector, this reform can create common ground with tokenization. Shares of private companies, funds or real assets could be distributed more widely in digital form. But this scenario will require strict rules on information, custody and liquidity.
Maximize your Tremplin.io experience with our 'Read to Earn' program! For every article you read, earn points and access exclusive rewards. Sign up now and start earning benefits.
