On March 18, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) jointly issued a new 68-page regulatory guidance on Tuesday, explicitly stating that most digital assets do not qualify as securities, aiming to provide a clearer regulatory framework for the market.

In terms of asset classification, the SEC identified four categories of crypto assets that are not securities: digital commodities, digital collectibles, digital utilities, and payment stablecoins as defined under the GENIUS Act. The only category of crypto assets still subject to securities laws is digital securities, which are tokenized forms of traditional securities. Regarding the determination of investment contracts, the SEC clarified the conditions for terminating such contracts, requiring project teams to make clear and unambiguous disclosures of the core management actions they have committed to. Once an investment contract is terminated, the related crypto assets can be exempt from securities law jurisdiction.

Concerning exemption pathways, Atkins proposed three mechanisms: first, a "startup exemption" allowing project teams to raise up to $5 million within four years; second, a "funding exemption" permitting up to $75 million in fundraising within 12 months, with required disclosures filed with the SEC; and third, an "investment contract safe harbor" providing clear standards for non-securities classification for qualifying crypto assets. Atkins stated that the SEC plans to seek public comments on these proposed rules in the coming weeks and will coordinate with the CFTC on proposed regulations to gather public input.