Wall Street institutions urge the U.S. SEC to amend the "Crypto Asset Regulation," public comment period is about to end.

October 21 — As the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)'s public comment period for the proposed "Crypto Asset Regulation" draws to a close, digital asset firms, Wall Street institutions, and industry advocacy groups are all putting forward their own positions, hoping to influence the agency's regulatory direction for the future of financial innovation.

The SEC's comment period for the proposed "Crypto Asset Regulation" closes on Tuesday, and more than 100 comments have been received so far. The rule aims to provide a compliance pathway for investment activities involving digital assets, allowing qualifying offerings to be exempt from certain securities law requirements. These include a "startup exemption" that allows offerings of up to $5 million to be exempt from registration requirements; in addition, the proposal includes a "fundraising exemption" that allows issuers to conduct offerings of up to $75 million within one year.

The Hyperliquid Policy Center (HPC), in its comment letter submitted to the SEC, urged the agency to adopt the "Crypto Asset Regulation," but also pointed out that adjustments are needed to the treatment of airdrops. The center asked the SEC to formally incorporate previous relevant statements into the rule, namely that if airdrop recipients can obtain assets without paying any consideration, this does not constitute a capital contribution, and therefore the relevant assets are not securities. HPC also believes that the scope of the safe harbor mechanism proposed by the SEC is too limited.