Paul Atkins is the Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). He drew attention at a recent roundtable. He supports decentralized finance (DeFi). He believes it aligns with American values of economic freedom and innovation.
He criticized the current restrictions. They prevent blockchain technology from growing. He said that legal threats and unclear rules have scared American users and companies away from past laws.
Atkins highlighted a big policy change. Federal securities control does not cover employment. This includes validators, miners, and staking service providers. This is a big change.
Ethereum has nearly $68 billion in total value locked. This is over half of the decentralized finance sector. It shows the difference between releasing code for staking or wallets and the role of a broker.
The Securities and Exchange Commission wants to help on-chain financial systems. They are ready to give clearer directions. This may change current laws. Atkins suggested creating a “innovation exemption.”
This would speed up the approval process for new Bitcoin companies. This initiative matches the goal of former President Trump. He wanted to make the United States a key center for technology linked to Bitcoin.
