Author: J1N, Techub News
On July 31, 2025, Paul S. Atkins, Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), published an article announcing the launch of "Project Crypto." This initiative aims to promote the on-chain transformation of U.S. financial markets through comprehensive regulatory reforms, with the goal of re-establishing the United States as the absolute leader in the global cryptocurrency market.
A Change of Course: The Past Conservative Regulation is Fully Rejected
Atkins mentioned in the article that the past SEC policies were "too conservative," which not only stifled innovation but also directly led many cryptocurrency companies to choose to "go overseas." Following "Operation Chokepoint 2.0" and the previous administration's enforcement wave, U.S.-based cryptocurrency companies have been leaving in large numbers, and the regulatory environment is widely viewed as uncertain and hostile.
The launch of "Project Crypto" is, in fact, a comprehensive correction of the "enforcement-first" approach of the past few years. Atkins clearly stated that the SEC will assist companies that were forced to flee the U.S. to return home and create a "clear and predictable" regulatory path for newcomers. This means that the U.S. is attempting to replace regulatory "deterrence" with regulatory "certainty" to rebuild confidence in the cryptocurrency industry.
In Coordination with the Trump Administration's Strategy, Building the "World Capital of Cryptocurrency"
"Project Crypto" is not an isolated action but resonates with the overall digital asset strategy of the Trump administration. Atkins revealed that the SEC will promote market structure legislation based on the existing work in the House of Representatives to ensure that the U.S. market is free from "overregulatory interference" in the future and to solidify its position as the "world capital of cryptocurrency."
At the same time, the President's Working Group on Financial Markets (PWG) released a recent report that provides the SEC with a clear roadmap: to establish a unified on-chain regulatory framework that balances innovation and investor protection. This means that the U.S. is creating a "highway" for the cryptocurrency industry through clear legislation, rather than a regulatory maze filled with obstacles.
Legalization of On-Chain Financial Activities like ICOs
Atkins emphasized that the primary goal of "Project Crypto" is to quickly establish a regulatory framework for the issuance of crypto assets in the U.S., ending the long-standing issue of "market selection deficiency." The SEC will propose disclosure, exemption, and safe harbor schemes covering ICOs, airdrops, and network rewards, allowing issuers to include U.S. investors without fear of litigation risks.
Once the regulations provide clear safety boundaries, the U.S. may witness an "innovative Cambrian explosion" in cryptocurrency financing and tokenization. From Wall Street to Silicon Valley, companies are already lining up to tokenize in the U.S., and if this trend aligns with policy implementation, it could reshape the underlying structure of the U.S. capital markets.
Three Key Breakthroughs: Custodial Freedom, Super Apps, On-Chain Software
Custodial Freedom: Atkins proposed that the right to self-custody digital wallets and on-chain assets is an "indispensable core value of America." He will push for reforms in custodial rules to break the bottlenecks created by "special purpose brokers," SAB 121, and "Operation Chokepoint 2.0."
Super Apps: The SEC will explore allowing the same platform to simultaneously offer non-securities cryptocurrency assets, cryptocurrency securities, and traditional securities trading, breaking the current multiple regulatory barriers. This is seen as the prototype of an American "financial super app," which could fundamentally disrupt the existing exchange landscape.
DeFi Ecosystem: The SEC will provide space for decentralized finance (DeFi) and on-chain automated software systems like AMM trading mechanisms. It may even revise the National Market System Rules (Reg NMS) to clear obstacles for tokenized securities trading. This signal indicates that the U.S. is preparing to incorporate "decentralized finance" into the mainstream financial system.
From Paper Contracts Under the Sycamore Tree to Smart Contracts on the Blockchain, the U.S. is at a Turning Point in Financial Transformation
Paul S. Atkins' "Project Crypto" is not just a regulatory statement; it resembles a declaration of the times. In the increasingly intense global policy competition over cryptocurrency, the U.S. is no longer satisfied with being a facilitator but is attempting to re-establish the rules of the game and become a dominant force in the cryptocurrency world.
Regulation is shifting from "enforcement-first" to "rules-first," from "technological fear" to "technological embrace." This transformation may just be beginning, but it has already laid the groundwork for the future. An on-chain financial system, a new cryptocurrency order dominated by a free market, is being conceived and initiated.
From paper contracts under the sycamore tree to smart contracts on the blockchain, the U.S. has repeatedly stood at the turning point of financial transformation. Now, whether "Project Crypto" can fulfill its ambition to reshape the global cryptocurrency financial landscape will require the joint examination of regulatory wisdom, policy patience, and market practice.
Are We Building the Future, or Repeating the Past?
As a practitioner, I am excited about the launch of "Project Crypto." The openness and clarity of regulation will reshape entrepreneurs' confidence and the direction of capital in the short term. However, if we place all our hopes on policy loosening, we may overestimate the role of regulation while underestimating the industry's own issues.
The stagnation of Web3 is not solely due to unclear rules but also because of a lack of direction. Even if regulation is smooth and licenses are issued, if the entire industry is still focused on "how to issue tokens" and "how to go public legally" rather than "what problems it solves for whom," it is merely repeating the packaging game of the old financial system.
Take the currently hot topic of RWA tokenization as an example. The packaging of tokenization technology is refreshing, but essentially, it is no different from company securitization decades ago. Company securitization was a breakthrough from 0 to 1, while RWA tokenization is more like a process optimization from 1 to 2. Although it improves efficiency, it is far from constituting an innovation.
Web3 is not about allowing people to "reissue securities on the blockchain," but about answering people's real needs: why do ordinary people need an on-chain world? In what scenarios are they willing to use, can use, and cannot live without it? If this question remains unanswered, then no matter how friendly the policies are, on-chain finance can only be an abstract utopia.
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