SEC's Crypto Savvy Surprises Blockchain Insiders at D.C. Forum

From questions about atomic swaps to comments about airdrops and forks, the SEC's FinTech Forum, held at its headquarters in Washington, D.C., demonstrated that the U.S. securities regulator has been paying close attention to the crypto world - and has a deeper understanding than some give it credit for.

Even when pleading ignorance, the SEC officials sounded more informed about crypto than one might expect from Beltway bureaucrats.

Chen Arad, chief marketing officer of Solidus Labs and an attendee at the forum, told CoinDesk that senior SEC staff were able to "Comfortably" discuss various technical issues, including nodes, consensus mechanisms and smart contracts.

While the SEC may have shown its chops at Friday's forum, this does not necessarily mean that there will be any significant change in its approach to tokens and securities law.

In general, ETFs were launched some 25 years ago, but the SEC has yet to publish a standardized rule for issuers looking for exemptive relief.

Rutenberg said "The biggest news of the forum from the SEC is that they appear willing to entertain granting no action letters to ICOs that are no longer selling tokens," referring to remarks by Director of Corporation Finance William Hinman.

"However, if one was expecting the SEC to make firm commitments or provide more definitive guidance they would likely have come away disappointed from the forum."

Market manipulation has been a hot button topic for the SEC, with several bitcoin exchange-traded fund proposals rejected due to concerns about the market.

These concerns have been so publicly stated that Bitwise has now submitted two reports to the SEC in an effort to counter that narrative.

Szczepanik did mention manipulation - and other issues - in her closing remarks, reiterating a request for information that she, and other SEC officials, have been making for months.