SEC Delays Crypto Fundraising Framework After Wall Street Opposition

SEC Abruptly Suspends Crypto Framework Rulemaking

The Securities and Exchange Commission unexpectedly canceled a scheduled open meeting that would have initiated formal rulemaking on Regulation Crypto Assets, the agency’s proposed framework for cryptocurrency fundraising. The announcement came just three days after the SEC revealed plans for the Friday session. While the agency publicly cited an “unforeseen scheduling issue,” sources indicate the real motivation involved pressure from Wall Street and White House deliberation over competing legislative priorities.

Wall Street Opposition and Legal Threats

According to informed sources, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) played a key role in the decision. The trade group, which represents major broker-dealers, investment banks, and asset managers, raised the prospect of legal challenges to the SEC’s statutory authority to proceed with the framework. This pressure came after months of SIFMA advocacy against what the group views as excessive regulatory relief for crypto and tokenized-securities companies. In a June 2025 letter, SIFMA warned the SEC that broad exemptions for crypto firms could create regulatory arbitrage, undermine investor protections, and fragment market liquidity, instead calling for formal notice-and-comment rulemaking rather than expedited exemptions.

Policy Landscape Remains Uncertain

The SEC’s retreat reflects broader uncertainty in Washington’s approach to crypto regulation. The Clarity Act, marquee legislation aimed at modernizing digital asset rules, remains stalled until lawmakers return from recess in mid-September, with a cloture vote expected September 15. The White House, sources suggest, wanted to see whether the legislation would advance before the SEC formalized its own frameworks. This week brought multiple signs of momentum elsewhere: a White House event on Wednesday featuring President Trump and prominent crypto executives, and the CFTC’s inaugural Innovation Advisory Committee meeting on Thursday. The SEC’s Crypto Task Force had been developing an innovation exemption to give crypto firms greater flexibility in tokenized securities trading, but that proposal remains on hold. The outcome of these regulatory battles will determine whether crypto markets gain access to clearer frameworks or remain subject to traditional finance’s patchwork resistance to innovation.

Source: Decrypt. Not financial advice.