SEC’s U-turn on crypto leaves key questions unanswered
The SEC dropped a raft of crypto cases and Trump’s talking up a crypto reserve. But lawyers warn crypto laws and regulations remain unclear.
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission is rapidly shifting its stance on cryptocurrency, dropping cases and investigations against major companies like Coinbase, OpenSea, Uniswap and Robinhood, among others.
President Donald Trump has further cemented the legitimacy of the industry with his announcements about a strategic Bitcoin and/or crypto reserve.
While the industry is celebrating these developments, there are plenty of unresolved questions. Does the SEC dropping its investigations into OpenSea and YugaLabs really mean that NFTs are not securities? Yuriy Brisov of Digital & Analogue Partners says its not that clear cut, pointing to the Ripple case as an example of how an assets classification depends on how it is sold.
Magazine spoke with a panel of legal experts to find out more about the ramifications of these moves: Brisov in Europe, co-chair of the Hong Kong Web3 Association Joshua Chu from Asia and Charly Ho of Rikka from US. This discussion has been edited for clarity and length.
