HPC backs SEC crypto asset proposal and urges five changes

HPC backs SEC crypto asset proposal and urges five changes

N
News Editor
2026-10-19 12:25:17
Hyperliquid Policy Center said it has submitted a comment letter to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission backing the agency’s proposed Regulation Crypto Assets and urging its adoption. The proposal, which the SEC put forward in August 2026, would let startup projects raise up to $5 million through token sales over four years and up to $75 million under a 12-month exempt offering framework. It would also create a new safe harbor to determine when a token is no longer tied to an investment contract. In its letter, HPC asked the SEC to make five changes before finalizing the rule. Those requests cover the treatment of airdrops, the legal status of secondary-market trading and on-chain protocol intermediaries, certification that a token was never linked to an investment contract, the handling of token buybacks, and continued federal preemption once a project satisfies safe harbor conditions. HPC said these revisions would give projects and market participants clearer rules while reducing the risk of overlapping registration requirements across more than 50 jurisdictions.

Hyperliquid Policy Center, or HPC, said it has submitted a comment letter to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission supporting the agency’s proposed Regulation Crypto Assets and urging the SEC to adopt it.

According to HPC, the proposal, introduced by the SEC in August 2026, would allow startup projects to raise as much as $5 million through token offerings over four years. It would also allow projects to raise up to $75 million through an exempt financing route within 12 months. The proposal would also establish a new safe harbor to determine when a token is no longer tied to an investment contract.

Five revisions proposed by HPC

In its comment letter, HPC asked for five changes covering airdrops, secondary-market trading, on-chain protocol intermediaries, token buybacks, and federal preemption.

  • Write the SEC’s March interpretation on airdrops into the final rule, making clear that steps such as connecting a wallet or passing sanctions screening to claim an airdrop do not amount to paying consideration.
  • Directly clarify the legal status of secondary-market trading and intermediaries such as on-chain protocols, so tokens issued under an exemption can trade freely from the outset.
  • Allow projects to certify directly that their tokens were never tied to an investment contract, so the safe harbor can be used without requiring a project to assume such a contract previously existed, and extend that protection to projects still under development.
  • Incorporate SEC staff guidance on token buybacks into the final rule, unify the definition of a 「central party」, and distinguish between programmatic buybacks and discretionary buybacks.
  • Keep federal preemption in place after a project meets the safe harbor conditions, so tokens do not face registration requirements across more than 50 jurisdictions.
This article was originally published by Bit.Fan. For more cryptocurrency news and market insights, visit www.bit.fan.
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