XRP and Ethereum have migrated to at the center of a major regulatory change in the United States, after new signals from United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has sparked claims that up to $4.7 trillion in capital could now be unlocked for the crypto market.
XRP, Ethereum Lead as Analyst Highlights SEC Policy Reversal
March 18, 2026, crypto analyst @Noalphalimits job a detailed breakdown following remarks by Paul Atkins from the SEC, which declared that most crypto assets are not securities—signaling a sudden change from the agency’s previous enforcement position.
This change is supported by an official SEC document describing “digital products” as crypto assets whose value is tied to the functional operation of decentralized systems rather than the management efforts of a central party. In this context, a list of 16 assets…including XRP and Ethereum alongside SolanaCardano, Dogecoin, Avalanche, Aptos, Bitcoin Cash, Hedera, Algorand, Litecoin, Polkadot, Shiba Inu, Stellar, Tezos and Chainlink have been highlighted as falling under this category.
The same framework also introduced a five-category structure covering digital products, digital collectibles, digital tools, stablecoins and digital securities, while clarifying that staking, airdrops and mining are not treated as securities-related activities.
Analyst Raises $4.7 Trillion Claim, Describes Market Chain Reaction
The analyst combined two key data points to support the claim that $4.7 trillion was released into the crypto market following the Latest SEC Position. The first is the market capitalization of 16 identified assets, estimated at more than $1.8 trillion. The second concerns $2.9 trillion in institutional capital which, according to the analyst, stayed away due to regulatory uncertainty. He believes that this barrier is now removed, which effectively “unblocks” this capital.
Based on this, the analyst described a gradual impact on the market that is already starting to form. The first stage involves the potential collapse of Pending SEC Lawsuits Against Stock Exchanges such as Coinbase and Kraken, as well as the long-running case involving Ripple and XRP. These cases were initially based on claims regarding unregistered securities offerings, a position now challenged by the updated classification.
The next phase focuses on exchange-traded funds, where the status of the goods is visible as creating a clearer regulatory pathway. This could accelerate spot ETF deposits linked to assets like XRP, Solana, Cardano and Avalanche, and large companies such as BlackRock, Fidelity and Grayscale are expected to play a role.
Further implications extend to commercial infrastructure and institutional access. US stock exchanges could increase their listings, thereby increasing liquidity and tightening spreads, while financial institutions, including Goldman SachsJPMorgan and Morgan Stanley are gaining clearer entry points into crypto markets through custody and trading services. At the same time, staking could return to American platforms.
Despite these developments, the analyst noted that this change remains an SEC interpretation and not established law. With legislative efforts, including a bill mooted by Senator Tim Scott, still pending, the sustainability of this system regulatory direction remains uncertainleaving the market to react in what may be a window of limited clarity.
Featured image created with Dall.E, chart from Tradingview.com
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