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Please find written input submissions to the Crypto Task Force below. The written input is posted without modification. We hope sharing the submissions will help encourage productive dialogue and continued engagement. Please note that the “Key Points” and “Topics” are AI generated. AI can make mistakes, and the Key Points and Topics are not a replacement for you reading the submissions. The Crypto Task Force has not reviewed these AI-generated summaries for accuracy or completeness. If you believe a Key Point or Topic is inaccurate, please email the Crypto Task Force at crypto@sec.gov. The written input provided to the SEC and posted on this page does not necessarily reflect the views of the Crypto Task Force or others in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The Digital Chamber (TDC) advocates for a technology-neutral, principles-based approach to broker-dealer custody of crypto assets, emphasizing exclusive control over private keys through secure key management practices.
TDC requests the SEC to amend Rule 15c3-3 to allow broker-dealers to establish possession or control of crypto asset securities using various approaches and technologies, including third-party vendors.
TDC urges the SEC to confirm that broker-dealers can use Section 3(a)(6) Banks as control locations for crypto asset securities and to amend Rule 15c3-3 to explicitly include crypto asset securities.
Anderson P.C. supports an activity-based regulatory framework over asset-based classification, advocating for the bifurcation of "security" definitions under the '33 and '34 Acts to provide clearer compliance pathways for digital assets.
The letter urges the SEC to issue interpretive guidance affirming decentralized oracle networks (DONs) as legitimate and reliable price benchmarks under fair value accounting standards and SEC rules.
Anderson P.C. recommends a tailored disclosure framework for network tokens, emphasizing transparency about tokenomics, governance, security audits, contributor incentives, and decentralization milestones.
Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA)
SIFMA recommends that the SEC adopt clear, consistent, and consensus-driven taxonomies and classification approaches for digital assets to provide greater clarity to market participants.
SIFMA urges the SEC to apply traditional regulatory principles around custody to digital assets, including the separation of financial activities, segregation of client assets, and ensuring proper control of assets.
SIFMA supports the SEC's efforts to provide guidance scoping-out non-securities digital assets and digital asset activities, emphasizing a technology-neutral approach.
The utility and real-world use case of a digital asset should be a primary determining factor in whether the asset is deemed a "security" under U.S. federal securities laws.
Digital assets with utility and real-world use cases are more appropriately regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) rather than the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The regulatory approach should avoid excessively complicated, multi-part legal tests and instead focus on practical, usable, and reasonable legal standards.
The Commission should adopt clear, evidence-based standards for reviewing crypto-asset based ETPs, focusing on the size and liquidity of the underlying spot market rather than the existence of a surveillance-sharing agreement (SSA) or a regulated market.
Market capitalization and the number of active spot markets should be prioritized as the most significant factors in evaluating crypto assets for ETP listing.
The historical track records of ETFs registered under the Investment Company Act that obtain exposure to the same assets as a proposed ETP should be highly instructive to the Commission.
Custody, RFI Responses, Safe Harbor, Security Status
Proposes a Qualified Self-Custodian (QSC) framework for Registered Investment Advisers (RIAs) to self-custody digital assets when traditional Qualified Custodian (QC) options are unavailable.
Emphasizes the need for RIAs to document their fiduciary judgment and implement safeguarding principles to protect investors while self-custodying digital assets.
Requests interim regulatory guidance and potential rulemaking to address the regulatory gap and facilitate secure, legal, and practical self-custody solutions for digital assets.
Tokenized securities should be treated as traditional securities, with permissioned assets transferable across whitelisted wallets using smart contracts to enforce lawful transfers and track ownership changes.
Permissionless public blockchains should be allowed for the issuance, trading, and tracking of tokenized securities, with relevant market participants responsible for evaluating the security and soundness of the infrastructure.
Broker-dealers should be allowed to engage in a full array of activities, including custody, trading, and settlement of tokenized securities, without the need for segregation or special licensure.
Deloitte encourages the SEC to align its work with the President’s Working Group on Digital Asset Markets to propose a Federal regulatory framework for digital assets.
Deloitte emphasizes the need for a principles-based framework rooted in established laws and regulations to ensure predictability and adaptability as the digital asset market evolves.
Deloitte highlights the importance of coordination among regulators and standard setters to avoid regulatory fragmentation and reduce the risk of regulatory arbitrage.
Donna Redel, Ivo Entchev, Olta Andoni, and Stephen Rutenberg, Crypto Policy Working Group
Self-custody wallets are not considered custodians under U.S. securities law as users retain exclusive control over their private keys and assets.
Self-custody wallets do not meet the definition of an exchange under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as they do not match orders or facilitate securities trading among multiple participants.
Self-custody wallets are not brokers under the Exchange Act, as they do not solicit transactions, route orders, match trades, or hold funds in escrow on behalf of clients.
Nasdaq supports a balanced framework that enables innovative crypto ETP offerings while maintaining regulatory safeguards to protect investors and market integrity.
Nasdaq urges the SEC to modernize its approach and support the development of the digital asset ecosystem on national securities exchanges along more consistent lines.
Nasdaq recommends that the SEC work with national securities exchanges and market participants to establish clear and consistent standards for evaluating crypto ETP proposals.
