SEC Asks White House to Expand Authority Over Cryptocurrency Custody Rules

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has petitioned the White House to grant it the authority to establish and oversee regulations for the custody of digital assets.

According to Bloomberg, the agency plans to revise existing norms to align them with the requirements already applied to the custody of securities and other stock market assets. The Commission also intends to eliminate several existing requirements it deems outdated. If granted expanded authority, the SEC would be able to mandate that advisors, investment companies, cryptocurrency exchanges, and other platforms adhere to unified standards for cryptocurrency custody and independently monitor their compliance. The exact list of requirements to be repealed could not be determined by the agency.

The agency states that the proposal was prepared in response to numerous requests from market participants. Details of the initiative are not yet disclosed: first, it must be reviewed by the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to make necessary amendments. If the presidential administration approves the proposal, the document will be returned to the SEC. After the text is published, interested parties will have 60 days to challenge the provisions of the document.

Earlier this summer, another U.S. financial regulator—the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)—proposed banning bets on prediction markets related to war, terrorism, and human casualties. This primarily concerns blockchain platforms Polymarket and Kalshi. The CFTC is seeking authority to regulate prediction markets, as well as the right to ban or permit specific types of bets. Additionally, the regulator proposes introducing the concept of “Games” into U.S. legislation, which would cover sports betting to be left legal.