tion: In one of his first appearances as the recently sworn-in chair of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Paul Atkins delivered remarks to the agency’s third roundtable discussion of crypto regulation.

C chair Paul Atkins promises 'huge benefits' from blockchain tech, hints at regulatory U-turn on crypto

Newly sworn-in chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Paul Atkins expressed his anticipation for “huge benefits” from blockchain technology, as well as the need for clear regulatory rules of the road for digital assets.

Atkins’ remarks come in one of his first appearances since taking over from former chair Gary Gensler, who resigned the day Trump took office. Some critics of the president see the appointment of Atkins to lead the SEC as an act on campaign promises to nod to the crypto industry and cut back on regulation. Democratic lawmakers on the Senate Banking Committee questioned Atkins on his ties to the industry, potentially presenting conflicts of interest in his role.

The direction of the SEC under new leadership

“We’ve noticed that we don’t have to be as concerned [...] about being accused of things that we’re not doing, like being broker-dealers for securities,” Exodus chief legal officer Veronica McGregor, who participated in the roundtable, told Cointelegraph. “It’s just a less scary regulatory environment in general. It is, however, still unclear what the ultimate regs are going to look like for crypto.”

The SEC crypto task force is scheduled to hold two more roundtables in May and June to discuss tokenization and decentralized finance, respectively. Commissioner Hester Peirce, who leads the task force, told Cointelegraph in March that she welcomed the opportunity to work with Atkins to “reorient the agency,” hinting at an SEC with regulations more favorable to the crypto industry.

In addition to the roundtables, the crypto task force has reported several meetings with digital asset firms to discuss various policies and considerations in developing a regulatory framework.