The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has proposed a new set of rules that could affect the cryptocurrency industry, stepping in after Congress failed to pass a market structure bill before lawmakers left for a month-long recess.

In a notice issued Tuesday, the SEC said the proposed rules would create a “clear and fit-for-purpose framework for certain investment contracts involving crypto assets.” According to the regulator, the “tailored securities offering regime” would allow entities to raise capital while preserving investor protections.

Notably absent from the package was an “innovation exemption” for crypto-based stocks, which had also been expected to be announced. The proposal arrived just days after the US Senate failed to advance the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act, a bill intended to clarify the roles federal agencies would play in overseeing and regulating crypto.

“[L]egislation remains indispensable to enacting ‘future-proofed’ rules of the road that are durable enough to protect the work we are undertaking today from being unwound by a future rogue regulator,” SEC Chair Paul Atkins said in a statement. “The SEC has and will continue to support Congress in delivering the CLARITY Act to President Trump’s desk.”

Under the proposed rules, crypto companies would be offered exemptions allowing the issuance of up to $5 million in tokens during a four-year period and up to $75 million during a 12-month period, along with a safe harbor exempting cryptocurrencies from being treated as “investment contracts.” Token issuers would be required to make financial statements and “would be subject to ongoing reporting requirements.” For an industry that has long argued that existing securities rules do not fit many digital assets cleanly, the proposal is notable because it attempts to create a specific disclosure path rather than rely solely on ad hoc enforcement or broader legislation.

The public will have 60 days to comment on the proposal after publication in the Federal Register.

The SEC’s proposed rules, issued in the absence of legislation from Congress, came ahead of a scheduled Thursday meeting of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on crypto, AI and prediction markets. The commodities regulator said it planned to address “areas where regulatory action can complement future congressional legislation.” Together, the two agencies are signaling that even without a new statute, federal rulemaking on crypto is still moving on parallel tracks.

Atkins had been scheduled to speak at the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium on Tuesday but canceled amid the SEC announcement. At the event, White House crypto adviser Patrick Witt said US regulators would “let loose” on crypto regulation if Congress was unable to move forward on the CLARITY Act.

CLARITY’s chances before a new Congress is sworn in?

Before the Senate broke for its August state work periods, Majority Leader John Thune filed cloture on a motion to take up the CLARITY crypto bill when lawmakers return in mid-September.

Following the August recess, senators have only 14 days in session before breaking again ahead of the November election. If Thune and Republican lawmakers cannot get a floor vote before then, the Senate has another 22 days in session before 2027, when new members of Congress will be sworn in.

Related: CLARITY or not, crypto isn’t going back in the bottle: Bitwise

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