U.S. SEC Chairman: Will promote on-chain capital market reforms and clarify the boundaries of digital asset securities

U.S. SEC Chairman Paul S. Atkins stated during a speech at the 2026 Reagan National Economic Forum that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is advancing the "New Era of the SEC" regulatory reform, focusing on modernizing digital asset regulation, promoting the development of on-chain capital markets, and supporting the U.S. to become a "global crypto hub."

Paul Atkins criticized the previous SEC's "regulatory hostility" towards the digital asset industry, stating that a large amount of crypto innovation was forced to move overseas as a result. He mentioned that with the support of the Trump administration, the SEC has launched "Project Crypto" and is collaborating with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission to promote on-chain market infrastructure and coordinate crypto regulation.

The SEC has recently clarified which digital assets are considered securities and which are not, and is advancing an innovative exemption mechanism for "tokenized listed securities," while also studying how on-chain trading systems can fit within the existing regulatory framework.

In addition, Paul Atkins emphasized that the SEC will reduce "over-disclosure" and regulatory burdens, promoting the "Make IPOs Great Again" reform, which includes lowering compliance costs for listed companies, increasing IPO flexibility, and formally proposing the repeal of climate disclosure rules introduced during the previous administration. The future of the U.S. capital markets should be built on a foundation of "free markets and innovation-driven" principles, and the role of regulatory agencies should be to provide clear rules and legal certainty, rather than suppressing technological development.