SEC Chair Paul Atkins confirmed on Monday that the agency’s proposed crypto safe harbor framework has advanced to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), a division within the Office of Management and Budget that reviews federal regulations before publication.
Atkins made the remarks at a digital assets summit hosted by Vanderbilt University and the Blockchain Association.
What the proposal includes
The safe harbor framework, which Atkins introduced last month, centers on a “startup exemption” that would allow crypto projects to raise capital without immediately registering with the SEC, while still including investor protections.
Under the proposal, projects could raise a certain amount of money over a four-year period while providing specific disclosures.
Atkins also proposed an “investment contract safe harbor” designed to work alongside token taxonomy-based interpretive guidance the SEC released in March — the first time the agency had set out clear parameters in a single document for when digital assets would be considered securities.
Atkins said at the event:
“We’ll have reg crypto that we’ll be proposing here shortly. It’s in fact at OIRA right now, which is the next step before being published, so that’s exciting.”
Regulations and roadblocks
The regulatory push comes as Congress works on broader crypto market structure legislation, though that effort has faced significant roadblocks over the past year.
Atkins stressed that legislation remains necessary because agency rulemaking alone is vulnerable to changes in presidential administrations.
“We can do a lot regulatorily, but we just have to make sure it takes root and can’t be done away with.”
Innovation exemption debate
Separately, the SEC is developing an innovation exemption that would function as a regulatory sandbox for onchain assets.
Citadel Securities has urged the SEC to pursue formal notice-and-comment rulemaking rather than rely on exemptions, arguing broad exemptions could undermine investor protection and market surveillance.
The Blockchain Association pushed back on Monday, arguing the SEC has previously relied on exemptions and has the authority to do so.
Atkins said the agency does have that authority and plans to release parameters around the innovation exemption soon:
“I’m really excited about that. I think there’s a lot to be done in that area.”
