Crypto industry urges SEC to clarify staking stance
Cryptocurrency industry groups are urging the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to issue formal guidance on staking, citing continued regulatory uncertainty for Web3 infrastructure providers, according to Allison Muehr, head of staking policy for the Crypto Council for Innovation, a trade group.
Clarifying the SEC’s position on staking has become a top priority for the crypto industry, Muehr said during Solana’s Accelerate conference in New York.
“We’re about 25% of the way there,” Muehr said. “The SEC has done more constructive engagement with us in the past four months than in the last four years, but we still don’t have formal staking guidance.”
Related: SEC acknowledges slew of crypto ETF filings as reviews, approvals accelerate
Changing regulatory stance
Under the previous US presidential administration, the SEC brought enforcement actions against several crypto firms for offering staking services it alleged were unregistered securities offerings.
Since President Donald Trump took office in January, the SEC has softened its stance.
In February, the agency issued guidance stating that memecoins do not qualify as investment contracts under US law.
In April, the regulator clarified that stablecoins also do not qualify as securities if they are marketed solely as a means of making payments.
Still, the agency has yet to approve staking in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or issue formal guidance on how staking services can be offered compliantly in the US.
Other policy goals
Muehr said she is optimistic the SEC will eventually approve staking for cryptocurrency ETFs, including for proposed Solana (SOL) funds.
“Getting there means first getting the SEC comfortable with the structure,” she said, noting the industry has recently had “some productive meetings with the agency.”
“I’m hopeful we’ll see a Solana ETF and even a staked Solana ETF in the US sometime soon.”
The SEC is not the only agency the crypto industry is looking to persuade. Muehr said the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) — the top US tax authority — has also taken a position the industry opposes.
“The IRS finally issued a statement saying staking rewards are service income,” she said. “We disagree with that interpretation and continue to engage.”
Magazine: Crypto wanted to overthrow banks, now it’s becoming them in stablecoin fight
Nigel Farage has successfully exploited the Commons recess to “grab the mic” and “dominate” the agenda, Harriet Harman has said.
Speaking on Sky News’ Electoral Dysfunction podcast, the Labour peer said that the Reform UK leader has been able to “get his voice heard” while government was not in “full swing”.
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Mr Farage used a speech this week to set himself, rather than Kemi Badenoch’s Tories, up as the main opposition to Sir Keir Starmer at the next election.
The prime minister responded on Thursday with a speech attacking the Clacton MP.
Baroness Harman said: “It’s slightly different between opposition and government because in government, the ministers have to be there the whole time.
“They’ve got to be putting legislation through and they kind of hold the mic.
“They can dominate the news media with the announcements they’re making and with the bills they’re introducing, and it’s quite hard for the opposition to get a hearing whilst the government is in full swing.
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‘Big cuts’ to fund other Reform UK policies
“What we used to do when we were in opposition before 1997 is that as soon as there was a bank holiday and the House was not sitting, as soon as the half-term or the summer recess, we would be on an absolute war footing and dominate the airwaves because that was our opportunity.
“And I think that’s a bit of what Farage has done this week,” Harman added.
“Basically, Farage can dominate the media agenda.”
She went on: “He’s kind of stepped forward, and he’s using this moment of the House not sitting in order to actually get his voice heard.
“It’s sensible for the opposition to take the opportunity of when the House is not sitting to kind of grab the mic and that is what Nigel Farage has done.”
But Baroness Harman said it “doesn’t seem to be what Kemi Badenoch’s doing”.
She explained that the embattled leader “doesn’t seem to be grabbing the mic like Nigel Farage has” during recess, and added that “there’s greater opportunity for the opposition”.
SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce has backed the guidance, saying it gives clarity to stakers, while her peer Caroline Crenshaw claims it ignores existing laws.
Two NYPD detectives allegedly linked to a crypto torture case in Manhattan have been placed on modified duties as the investigation unfolds, according to multiple reports.
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