SEC Crypto Safe Harbor Moves to White House Review as New Token Rules Near Release

Key Takeaways

• SEC Chair Paul Atkins said the agency’s “Regulation Crypto Assets” proposal is now at OIRA, the White House review stage before publication.

• The framework centers on three pieces: a startup exemption, a fundraising exemption and an investment contract safe harbor.

• The proposal builds on the SEC’s March 17 crypto interpretation, which set out a token taxonomy and clarified when certain crypto transactions may fall under securities law.

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s crypto safe harbor framework has moved closer to a formal release, with Chair Paul Atkins saying the proposal is now under White House review.

Speaking at the Digital Assets and Emerging Technology Policy Summit, Atkins said the SEC’s “Regulation Crypto Assets” package is at the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), the next step before publication.

The development gives the market a clearer sign that the SEC is trying to move quickly from broad guidance to a proposed rulemaking path.

Atkins had already said on March 17 that he expected the Commission to consider releasing the proposal for public comment in the coming weeks.

The current push traces back to March 17, when the SEC issued an interpretation on how federal securities laws apply to certain crypto assets and transactions involving them.

In that release, the SEC said the move was meant to provide greater clarity on its treatment of crypto assets, while the CFTC joined the interpretation and said it would administer the Commodity Exchange Act consistently with that framework.

Atkins’ speech the same day laid out the broader architecture behind that effort.

He said the Commission was implementing a token taxonomy that treats digital commodities, digital collectibles, digital tools and payment stablecoins under the GENIUS Act as categories that are not deemed securities, while tokenized traditional securities remain within the digital securities category.

He also said the interpretation addresses how an investment contract can end, which is a central question for token issuers and market participants.

Atkins described three main elements for a future rule proposal.

The first is a time-limited startup exemption for offerings of investment contracts involving certain crypto assets.

In his March 17 speech, he suggested a period of up to four years and said entrepreneurs could be allowed to raise up to a defined amount, which he illustrated as $5 million, while providing principles-based disclosures on a public website.

The second is a fundraising exemption.

Atkins said this could allow issuers to raise up to a defined amount, which he described as $75 million during a 12-month period, while retaining access to other exemptions under federal securities law.

He said disclosure under that approach could include principles-based information, a discussion of the issuer’s financial condition and financial statements.

The third piece is the investment contract safe harbor itself.

Atkins said this could apply once an issuer has completed or permanently ceased the essential managerial efforts it represented or promised under the investment contract, giving issuers and market participants a more rule-based standard for when a crypto asset is outside federal securities-law treatment.

For crypto firms, the significance is practical.

The March interpretation already provided a more defined jurisdictional map, including a token taxonomy and guidance on areas such as airdrops, protocol mining, protocol staking and wrapped assets.

A proposed safe harbor would add a more concrete compliance pathway around capital formation and token launches.

Atkins has framed that effort as part of a wider SEC shift.

In remarks on March 19, he said the agency is working to craft rules that are clear enough to guide markets, flexible enough to accommodate innovation and firm enough to protect investors.

He also said the recent SEC-CFTC interpretation was one of the first outputs of a new harmonization effort between the agencies and described it as a beginning rather than a finished framework.

For now, the proposal remains in the review stage.

Still, its move to OIRA suggests the SEC is closing in on a formal release that could become one of the agency’s most consequential crypto rulemaking steps of 2026.

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