SEC Chair Paul Atkins Says “Very Few” Tokens Are Securities: What Is “Project Crypto”?

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and SEC Chair Paul Atkins are actively signalling a sharp policy turn on digital assets. On 19 August 2025, during the SALT conference in Wyoming, Atkins said that only a “very few” crypto tokens should be treated as securities. He further clarified that the tokens themselves are “probably not” securities. 

According to Atkins, the classification of the tokens depends on how they are packaged and sold, which is a visible shift from the SEC’s enforcement-led posture under former Chair Gary Gensler.

“From the SEC’s perspective, we will plow forward on this idea that just the token itself is not necessarily the security. There are very few, in my mind, tokens that are securities. But it depends on what is the package around it and how that’s being sold,” said Atkins.

“I can buy an orange and I’m not necessarily buying the promise to have somebody harvest it, squeeze it and then market it and then send me the dividend,” he said. “So that’s a lot different than just buying a token in the marketplace.”

US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Paul Atkins suggested only a small fraction of crypto tokens should be considered securities.

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