The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has made a dramatic U-turn in its approach to cryptocurrency regulation. Commissioner Hester Peirce, known as “Crypto Mom” for her support of digital assets, delivered a striking speech that marks a new era for the industry.
Speaking at the Coin Center Dinner on September 25, 2025, Peirce did something unprecedented. She apologized for the SEC’s past hostile stance toward crypto companies and urged the industry to move quickly in this new regulatory climate.
“I am sorry that over most of my tenure at the SEC I failed to convince my colleagues in government to give you a chance,” Peirce told the audience. She encouraged attendees to use this time of regulatory clarity to “build good things that will enhance the safety, security, happiness, and prosperity of your family, friends, neighbors, and nation.”
Major Leadership Changes Drive Policy Shift
The transformation began with significant leadership changes at the SEC. Gary Gensler, who led an aggressive enforcement campaign against crypto companies from 2021 to 2025, ended his tenure on January 20, 2025. Paul Atkins took over as SEC Chairman, bringing a completely different approach to digital asset regulation.
Under Gensler’s leadership, the SEC launched enforcement actions against major crypto firms including Binance, Coinbase, and Kraken. His administration argued that most cryptocurrencies were securities that required strict regulatory compliance. This “regulation by enforcement” approach created uncertainty and pushed many crypto businesses overseas.
The new leadership has taken the opposite approach. Acting Chairman Mark Uyeda launched a Crypto Task Force on January 21, 2025, with Peirce as its leader. Paul Atkins was later confirmed as permanent SEC Chairman in April 2025. The task force aims to create clear rules for crypto assets rather than relying on enforcement actions.
Project Crypto Modernizes Rules for Digital Assets
Chairman Atkins announced “Project Crypto” on July 31, 2025, calling it “a Commission-wide initiative to modernize the securities rules and regulations to enable America’s financial markets to move on-chain.”
The project represents President Trump’s vision of making America the “crypto capital of the world.” Atkins emphasized that “most crypto assets are not securities” and criticized previous regulations that “hindered growth and innovation in domestic markets.”
The SEC has already begun dropping enforcement cases against crypto companies. In February 2025, the agency agreed to dismiss its lawsuit against Coinbase, one of the highest-profile cases from the Gensler era. The agency also withdrew several other cases and created new guidance for digital assets.
Task Force Sets Clear Regulatory Goals
The Crypto Task Force has specific goals to help the industry understand what’s allowed. According to the SEC’s official description, the task force will “help draw clear regulatory lines, appropriately distinguish securities from non-securities, craft tailored disclosure frameworks, provide realistic paths to registration for both crypto assets and market intermediaries.”
The task force includes staff from across the SEC, led by Richard Gabbert as Chief of Staff and Taylor Asher as Chief Policy Advisor. They plan to hold public meetings and gather input from industry participants, academics, and other interested parties.
In August 2025, the SEC released guidance on liquid staking, determining that certain staking activities are not securities under federal law. This removed years of uncertainty for crypto companies that offer staking services.
Industry Response and Future Outlook
The crypto industry has welcomed these changes after years of regulatory uncertainty. Many companies that moved operations overseas are now considering returning to the United States. The clearer regulatory environment has also attracted more institutional investors who previously avoided crypto due to unclear rules.
Peirce’s speech included humor alongside serious policy discussions. She jokingly proposed creating an NFT collection called “The Dog’s Breakfast” featuring characters from the crypto world, including “CryptoMom” with a “slightly befuddled expression” and a lawyer who carries a securities law book but “has yet to open” it.
The commissioner also mentioned her post-SEC plans, originally considering beekeeping but noting that “bees sting with less glee than most of my Twitter commenters.”
The regulatory changes extend beyond just dropping enforcement cases. The SEC has created new frameworks for different types of digital assets, including stablecoins and tokenized securities. The agency is working on rules that will allow more crypto products to trade on traditional exchanges while maintaining investor protections.
The Path Forward for Crypto Innovation
Peirce’s message was clear: the industry must take advantage of this favorable regulatory climate. She urged crypto companies to build systems that “strengthen safety, encourage prosperity, and improve people’s lives” rather than just focusing on speculation.
The speech represents more than just a policy change—it signals a fundamental shift in how the U.S. government views cryptocurrency technology. Instead of seeing crypto as a threat to traditional finance, the new approach treats it as an innovation that can strengthen America’s financial leadership globally.
However, Peirce was careful to note that clearer rules don’t mean no rules. The SEC will still pursue fraud cases and protect investors from scams. The difference is that legitimate crypto businesses now have a clear path to compliance instead of facing enforcement actions for unclear violations.
The Crypto Task Force continues to work on comprehensive regulations that will provide certainty for the industry while maintaining necessary protections for investors. Their work aims to create a framework that encourages innovation while preventing the fraud and manipulation that has plagued some parts of the crypto market.
With this new regulatory approach, the United States is positioning itself to compete with other countries that have already created crypto-friendly regulations. The goal is to bring crypto businesses back to America and establish the country as the global leader in digital asset innovation.
A New Chapter Begins
Commissioner Peirce’s apology and call for quick progress marks the end of the enforcement-heavy era and the beginning of a collaborative approach to crypto regulation. The industry now has an opportunity to prove that clear regulations can support both innovation and investor protection. How companies respond to this opportunity will shape the future of cryptocurrency in America.