SEC Chair Shifts Focus to Crypto Innovation, Proposes ’Innovation Exemption’

SEC Chair Paul Atkins is steering the agency toward a pro-innovation stance for cryptocurrency regulation, marking a stark departure from his predecessor Gary Gensler's enforcement-heavy approach. "We're building a framework to attract talent back to the U.S. and foster future innovation," Atkins said during a Wednesday address, suggesting the SEC might rebrand as the "Securities and Innovation Commission."

The chair revealed plans to finalize an "innovation exemption" by year-end to accelerate on-chain offerings, alongside ambitions for a "super app" unifying crypto regulatory compliance. Distributed ledger technology remains his primary area of enthusiasm within the sector.

Atkins' agenda faces headwinds from the ongoing government shutdown, which has forced the SEC into emergency operations. The policy shift could reshape the regulatory landscape for major cryptocurrencies including BTC, ETH, and SOL, though no specific digital assets were mentioned in his remarks.