Crypto Lawyers Say US Agencies, Not Congress, Will Steer Crypto Rules After the Midterms

As Americans vote in the midterms, Maylea Ma, deputy general counsel at 1inch, says the next stage of crypto policy will be shaped mostly by the SEC, CFTC and Treasury. In her view, the stalled CLARITY Act may change course depending on the result, but real progress over the coming years will come from regulators who are talking more with crypto projects. She stressed that this engagement does not offer the lasting certainty the industry wanted from a law, since the long-term aim is a statute that cannot be undone whenever a new government arrives.

Why Institutional Investors Are Waiting

Michael Ho, co-founder of D3, the team behind Doma Protocol, shares that concern. He says policy built on agency guidance can be reversed by a future administration, which keeps serious money on the sidelines while the market structure bill is stuck. In his words, clear rules written into law are what will bring institutional capital into tokenized real world assets, whatever the election outcome.

Recent SEC and CFTC Crypto Moves

The agencies have not stood still. In August, the SEC proposed a framework for crypto fundraising, including exemptions for some token offerings and a safe harbor from being treated as investment contracts. In September, it updated staff guidance on token buybacks, crypto networks and staking receipt tokens. The CFTC sent its own crypto market plan to the White House for review on Sept. 17, two days after the Senate failed to advance the CLARITY Act.