Crypto Struggles in SEC’s Lame ‘Limbo’ as Paul Atkins Gives it Another Shot

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Oh, the SEC. Always a little late to the party and wearing the wrong outfit. Paul Atkins, the new SEC Chairman, has come out swinging, claiming the agency’s past attempts at crypto regulation were… well, not exactly *stellar*.

In a speech that could’ve been titled “Let’s Try This Again, Shall We?”, Atkins admits the Commission’s approach was basically a disaster. First, they ignored crypto like it was some annoying fad, then they tried to regulate it like it was the wild west. Spoiler: It didn’t go well. He basically said the message from the SEC was, “You figure it out,” which, as you can imagine, didn’t exactly inspire trust.

“It was like a catch-22,” Atkins quipped. “We basically told them to solve their own problems. Not exactly a trust-building exercise.”

But fear not, crypto fans. Atkins is on a mission to rebuild that shattered trust. He’s now sending the Division of Corporation Finance out there with a fresh mission: Be more transparent. He promised while they’re still figuring out the big rules, they’ll help firms “navigate” the current mess.

Let’s Talk About FinHub, Shall We?

In another bold move, Atkins wants to give FinHub, the SEC’s “cool” innovation wing (now no longer just an enforcement tool), a seat at the grown-up table. Once upon a time, FinHub was where they slapped fines on tech companies. Now, it’s going to play a key role in fostering crypto innovation. Ah, progress.

Atkins is also saying that maybe it’s time to let firms do the impossible: trade both securities and non-securities in the same entity. Could this be the start of the mythical “super-app” everyone’s been talking about? Probably. Investors, Atkins says, should be able to buy traditional and digital financial products like they’re ordering a pizza online. Why not?

The speech, though full of optimism, is still a careful dance. Atkins knows the SEC can’t just go throwing regulations out the window. “We need to innovate, but stay in our lane,” he says, with a wink. We’ll see how long that lasts.

But hey, at least he’s trying, right?

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2025-05-19 18:59