SEC and CFTC Relaunch Crypto Project to Clarify Regulation of Digital Assets

The SEC and CFTC have relaunched Project Crypto to provide clear, streamlined regulation for the growing US digital assets industry.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) have also launched Project Crypto in a joint effort to provide regulatory clarity to the digital assets industry.

This move is part of a strategy to harmonize the two agencies’ approaches to the crypto market and ensure that US financial leadership is in line with technological innovation.

Project Crypto Target Clearer Crypto Rules

In a joint statement on January 29, SEC Chairman Paul Atkins and CFTC Chairman Heath Tarbert emphasized that “America’s financial markets are the strongest and most trusted in the world because they are built on the foundations of clear and fair rules.”

However, in recent years, under the Biden administration, enforcement actions and regulations have often been unclear, creating uncertainty for market participants. Under President Trump’s leadership, the two parties have shared plans to return to core principles that emphasize transparency, predictability, and fairness. This effort will be developed through Project Crypto, a joint initiative aimed at harmonizing the regulation of digital assets.

Project Crypto is designed to prepare US markets for a future where trading, clearing, settlement, and custodial transactions are increasingly occurring.

The plan comes as Congress advances bipartisan legislation to establish a government framework for digital assets. Despite this, the agencies believe that these rules alone are not enough, noting that effective oversight requires “disciplined application based on fairness and free market principles.”

According to the media, this plan will focus on creating clear ways for companies to meet the needs. This will include updating monitoring tools to reflect modern trading practices and implementing the rules in a systematic step-by-step manner.

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Regulators also warned that failure to modernize could drive innovation and investment to other countries with available markets.

Consistency and Clear Oversight

The primary goal of Project Crypto is to bring the SEC and CFTC into closer alignment, addressing the divergent rules and overarching areas that have long made it difficult for businesses to operate efficiently.

The system seeks to address these issues by streamlining definitions, coordinating surveillance, and securely sharing data between them. The two regulators also want to reduce duplication, provide clear guidance to investors and businesses, and support a market that is both innovative and well-regulated.

The relaunch builds on previous efforts, including the SEC’s Project Crypto and the CFTC’s Crypto Sprint, and represents a modern approach to interagency coordination. By working together, the duo hopes to provide clarity to market participants, promote innovation on US soil, and ensure that the future of finance develops under guidance that protects investors while supporting progress.