SEC Chairman Paul Atkins said the agency will move forward with rules for on-chain fundraising and tokenized securities, even though Congress failed to pass the CLARITY Act. Speaking in Washington on September 29 in an interview with CNBC, Atkins outlined the regulator's ongoing work under its existing authority, saying the SEC aims to provide regulatory clarity for innovators and investors developing digital financial products in the United States.

SEC Sets Out Framework for Tokenized Securities

Atkins said the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission have issued a joint interpretive release defining tokenized securities and other tokenized assets. The distinction, he said, helps clarify which regulator oversees different digital financial products — a classification that determines which agency's rules apply to a given product.

The SEC has also proposed a rule addressing on-chain fundraising, while its Innovation Exemption would establish a controlled environment for tokenized securities. Atkins described the exemption as a sandbox in which companies could issue tokens representing the actual rights and privileges of the underlying securities. He distinguished the approach from offshore products that provide synthetic exposure to an asset without conferring direct ownership rights. According to Atkins, the SEC wants tokenized securities to trade on-chain while preserving the rights attached to the underlying assets.

The legislative setback came on September 15, when the Senate rejected a motion to advance the CLARITY Act in a 49–50 vote. The CLARITY Act is a market-structure bill that would divide digital asset oversight between the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Atkins had previously said the SEC would continue developing crypto rules using its existing authority. He has, however, also described legislation as indispensable for long-term regulatory certainty — leaving the fate of the SEC's proposed on-chain fundraising rule and Innovation Exemption, together with any renewed congressional effort, as the developments to watch.

Atkins Addresses Stablecoins and Tokenization Concerns

During the interview, Atkins was asked about the objections that AMC CEO Adam Aron has raised against tokenized stocks. Aron has voiced concern about products that track share prices without granting holders governance rights. Atkins did not address AMC directly but said the SEC's framework would require tokens to represent actual securities — the same distinction between conferring rights and merely tracking a price that underpins the agency's approach.

Atkins also discussed concerns about Tether's USDT and its alleged use by Iran. He said stablecoin oversight falls outside the SEC's remit, pointing instead to the anti-money laundering and sanctions provisions of the GENIUS Act, the federal stablecoin statute, as the relevant safeguards.

IPO Activity and Private Credit Valuations

Atkins reported that 583 companies have gone public since he became chairman, raising approximately $208 billion. He said the figure represented a 75% increase over the comparable prior period.

On private credit valuations, Atkins emphasized that values depend on each individual instrument and fund. He said market participants must follow generally accepted accounting principles when valuing assets.