The SEC's New Crypto Task Force: MASSIVE Regulation in 2025

I bet you weren’t paying attention to this.

Earlier this month, newly-appointed Crypto Czar David Sacks announced the formation of the Security and Exchange Commissions' Crypto Task Force.

This new group plans to turn old paradigms of crypto regulation on their head and establish a new environment of flourishing in the industry.

Here’s why that’s so important.

What Is the SEC Crypto Task Force?

The SEC Crypto Task Force is a specialized group established by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to address the complexities of regulating the crypto market.

The task force was first announced by Crypto Czar David Sacks, who was recently appointed after Trump’s inauguration. 

It’s led by Hester Peirce, a commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Hester has been lovingly titled the "Crypto Mom" by some advocates thanks to her outspoken support for regulation that fosters — rather than slows down — crypto’s growth.

Why Do We Need This Task Force?

Under the Biden Administration, the crypto regulatory environment was incredibly difficult to make heads or tails of.

Biden’s Executive Order 14067, titled Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets, focused primarily on “safety” to large financial systems and individual users. 

Take this excerpt, for example:

“We must mitigate the illicit finance and national security risks posed by misuse of digital assets”

While this may seem like a positive sentiment, the language is so broad and all-encompassing that it can apply to almost anything.

For example, does illicit finance mean using privacy protocols? In the case of Tornado Cash, the founder was prosecuted for creating code which allowed crypto users on Ethereum to access privacy.

The term “misuse” is incredibly vague too — I’m sure the government can think of many ways that you’re misusing your own money.

A New Attitude Towards Crypto

Under the previous regime, the SEC prosecuted dozens of crypto businesses and DeFi protocols using ambiguous language.

And the worst part? This regulatory ambiguity and hardcore litigation scared developers and entrepreneurs away from innovating in the industry.

One of the biggest issues in the space, for instance, was the fact the SEC constantly threatened action against crypto tokens classified as securities. But there was little-to-no insight on how securities are actually defined.  

Famously, Former Commissioner Gensler would not answer if Ethereum, the second largest crypto in the world, was a security or not. 

According to Peirce, who will spearhead the new SEC crypto task force:

“The [previous] Commission refused to use regulatory tools at its disposal and incessantly slammed on the enforcement brakes as it lurched along a meandering route with a destination not discernible to anyone.”

In Peirce’s first written public statement, she laid out a new way of thinking about cryptocurrency regulation in the United States.

She wants to see a clear regulatory environment where “people have great freedom to experiment and build interesting things.”

What Are the Goals of the SEC Crypto Task Force?

Hester Peirce outlined a preliminary set of goals for the administration. She made it clear that this was not finished, and that more goals and objectives would be expanded on in the future.

So far, she’s outlined these 10 goals:

1. Determine what is and is not a security.
2. Create clear definitions on areas that fall outside of SEC jurisdiction.
3. Provide legal relief for crypto projects and businesses that are willing to cooperate collectively with the SEC.
4. Provide clarity on existing paths towards swiftly registering coins and tokens as securities.
5. Amend the Special Purpose Broke Dealer No-Action Statement.
6. Provide regulatory clarity for investment advisors.
7. Provide regulatory clarity for staking and lending.
8. Properly classify crypto-exchange related products.
9. Work on the intersection of crypto and clearing agencies.
10.  Experiment with cross-border regulatory practices.

Biden v. Trump: Crypto’s New Era

Overall, this new Crypto Task Force represents a new way of thinking about, and regulating, the burgeoning cryptocurrency industry.

The task force under Biden used regulatory uncertainty, selective enforcement, and lawfare to govern the crypto industry — often at the expense of innovation. 

The SEC under the Trump administration, on the other hand, is separating from this approach. Instead, it’s prioritizing regulatory clarity in order to help foster innovation and leadership for crypto in the United States.