On May 19, 2025, in a 66-32 vote, the U.S. Senate passed the GENIUS Act (the “Act”), which could be the first federal regulatory framework for payment stablecoins—digital assets with a stable value that are designed to be used as a means of payment or settlement and are 100% backed by reserves composed of cash, U.S. treasury bills, demand deposits and other short term

the Act is less certain in the U.S. House of Representatives which is considering a different bill to regulate stablecoin issuers. The Act excludes payment stablecoins from the definition of “security” in the various U.S. security laws which could be a harbinger of regulations to come in the digital asset space.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has recently shifted its approach to cryptocurrency and digital asset regulation, moving from an enforcement-centric model to a more structured and collaborative framework. Under the leadership of Chair Paul Atkins and Commissioners Hester Peirce and Mark Uyeda the SEC has initiated efforts to provide clearer guidelines for the crypto industry. This includes the establishment by the SEC of a dedicated Crypto Task Force aimed at developing comprehensive rules for the issuance, custody, and trading of digital assets, as well as clarifying the application of securities laws to various crypto activities. The one remaining Democrat on the Commission, Caroline Crenshaw, dissented, referring to the SEC’s new

In addition to these initiatives, the SEC has launched the Cyber and Emerging Technologies Unit (“CETU”) to complement the work of the Crypto Task Force and address fraud and misconduct in emerging technologies, including blockchain and artificial intelligence. The SEC has also announced a series of public roundtable discussions to engage stakeholders in shaping the

developments reflect a significant transformation in the SEC’s approach, aiming to balance investor protection with the promotion of innovation in the rapidly evolving digital asset sector.