CTF Written Submission

Wintermute Trading Ltd.

Sept. 3, 2025
  • Wintermute urges the SEC to affirm that broker-dealers may trade tokenized securities for their own account, self-clear and settle such trades, and custody proprietary positions using wallet software, without triggering customer protection rules.
  • The SEC should clarify that providing liquidity or trading tokenized securities on DeFi protocols—whether by U.S. or non-U.S. participants—does not, by itself, require broker-dealer registration or trigger U.S. jurisdiction, absent targeted solicitation.
  • The SEC should confirm that network tokens (e.g., Bitcoin, Ethereum), which are essential to decentralized protocols, are not securities under the Howey Test, even if initially distributed in fundraising transactions or traded speculatively.

Last Reviewed or Updated: Sept. 3, 2025