Senators Elizabeth Warren, Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, and Chris Van Hollen wrote to Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Paul Atkins to object to the SEC’s recent interpretive release on crypto assets, arguing it provides sweeping exemptions that would weaken decades of investor protections. The letter also points to Atkins’ stated intention to deliver further exemptions and frames the guidance as favoring the crypto industry, including the Trump family, over ordinary investors. The interpretive release divides crypto assets into five categories based on characteristics, uses, and functions, and concludes that digital commodities, digital collectibles, and digital tools are not themselves securities, while stablecoins may or may not be securities depending on their characteristics. The senators argued the approach conflicts with the Supreme Court’s Howey test and could allow issuers to evade securities regulation through regulatory loopholes that bad actors could exploit, citing industry warnings about potential cybersecurity risks, illicit protocols that harm investors, and the risk of flash crashes and severe volatility. The senators asked the SEC to respond to their questions by May 8, 2026, and urged Congress to close loopholes as it considers crypto market structure legislation.
U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs 2026-04-27
U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Democrats press SEC Chair Atkins over interpretive guidance that treats broad crypto categories as outside securities laws
Senators Elizabeth Warren and Chris Van Hollen wrote to SEC Chairman Paul Atkins objecting to the Commission’s recent interpretive release on crypto assets, arguing it creates broad exemptions that weaken investor protections and favor the crypto industry. They say the framework, which classifies some digital assets as non-securities and treats stablecoins case by case, conflicts with the Supreme Court’s Howey test and could enable regulatory arbitrage. The senators urged the SEC to address their concerns and called on Congress to close loopholes in upcoming crypto market structure legislation.