The SEC and CFTC are transforming “Project Crypto” into a single rulebook for how the United States controls digital asset markets.
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission have officially reshaped the Crypto Project into a joint effort to align federal oversight of digital asset trading.
The agency’s chairmen, Paul S. Atkins and Michael S. Selig, confirmed the change this week in Washington, DC.
The two agencies presented their plan in speeches on January 29, 2026, followed by a legal brief released on January 30.
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The goal is simple: reduce overlapping rules and ease uncertainty as Congress moves closer to a bipartisan market structure bill.
Notably, Project Crypto began in 2025 as an SEC program to update its approach to modern trading systems.
It will now function as a shared framework covering on-chain trading, clearing, settlement and custody between the two regulators.
Atkins called the expanded program “one of the most ambitious initiatives between our two agencies in a generation.”
He said the focus was on defining a “minimum effective dose” of regulation rather than creating two versions of the same regulation.
Under the new agreement, the agencies will build a shared taxonomy of cryptoassets, draw clearer lines between securities and commodities, and remove duplicate registrations that now burden companies overseen by the two regulators.
Selig said the Crypto Project aims to bring “coordination, consistency and a unified approach to federal oversight of crypto asset markets.”
He called it a rare chance to move beyond long-running infighting.
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Officials also announced that a formal memorandum of understanding would be forthcoming. It will ensure data sharing, joint monitoring, weekly executive calls and coordinated rulemaking.
The goal is to make the system sustainable, regardless of who holds the top positions in the future.
Early priorities include safe harbor ideas for software developers, new guidance on tokenized collateral, clearer rules for leveraged crypto trading, and a review of how prediction markets and event contracts should be treated.
The project is being rolled out under President Donald Trump, whose administration has appointed new leaders at both agencies and pushed to bring more crypto activity home.
Meanwhile, regulators continue to pressure Congress to pass the CLARITY Act and related bills. However, they say they can still issue short-term guidance under current law.
