SEC paves the way for crypto projects: raising $75 million and shedding security status

Wow, the SEC has actually come up with a reasonable idea for once – especially in times when crypto regulation often feels more like an obstacle course. Finally, it seems the US regulator understands that rigid securities laws cannot simply be applied 1:1 to blockchain projects.
The new proposal sounds almost too good to be true: crypto teams could raise up to $75 million – admittedly under certain conditions. And the best part? After three to five years, the token could lose its security status, provided the project has become sufficiently decentralized and gained real users. This could be a game-changer for many startups that have so far either wandered along shaky regulatory paths or moved abroad altogether.
I still remember the early days of DeFi – many protocols started out as high-risk securities offerings because their tokens were initially mainly used as investment vehicles. With this new framework, the SEC could bui



ld a kind of bridge: first security for investors, then freedom for actual use.
Of course, there’s also criticism:
- $75 million? For many projects, that might be too little.
- The disclosure obligations remain strict – not every small team will be able to handle that.
- And how will the SEC even define “sufficient decentralization”? There will certainly be debates about that.
But compared to other countries, the SEC is taking an astonishingly pragmatic approach. While Switzerland is already further ahead with its DLT Act and the EU is only providing clarity with MiCA starting in 2024, the US is trying to find a middle ground here – case-by-case decisions with more structure.
Will the model work? It’s still just a proposal for now, but if it proves successful, it could have a global impact. The crypto world is already keeping its fingers crossed – because more legal certainty would truly be a blessing for this dynamic field.