SEC Chair Paul Atkins says ‘very few’ crypto tokens are securities, aims to future-proof crypto against regulatory mischief

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Paul Atkins has reiterated his friendlier approach toward cryptocurrency compared to the previous administration, saying there are "very few" tokens that are securities.

During a Tuesday appearance at the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium, Atkins said the SEC would "plow forward and on this idea that just the token itself is not necessarily the security, and probably not."

"There are very few, in my mind, tokens that are securities, but it depends on what's the package around it and how that's being sold," Atkins added.

Atkins' remarks followed the SEC's launch of "Project Crypto" last month, an initiative the chair characterizes as designed to "modernize" securities laws and help American financial markets to move on-chain. Such efforts represent a contrast to former SEC Chair Gary Gensler's view that the majority of crypto assets were securities.

"It is a new day, especially for this [crypto] industry," said Atkins on Tuesday. "We are about innovation. Now we want to embrace innovation."

"We must craft a framework that future proofs the crypto markets against regulatory mischief," Atkins said in an X post on Tuesday following his appearance. "I look forward to working with my counterparts across the Administration and Congress to get the job done."

Some crypto analysts have praised Atkins' policies. Earlier this month, Bernstein analysts described the SEC's Project Crypto initiative as the "boldest and the most transformative crypto vision ever laid out by a sitting SEC chair," saying the project could "rewrite the rules of Wall Street."

Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan also described Project Crypto as a roadmap for investing over the next five years, with Atkins suggesting that all assets — including stocks, bonds, and dollars — would eventually move on-chain.