SEC Shifts Focus: Crypto No Longer on 2026 Agenda

In a significant policy shift, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has decided to exclude cryptocurrency from its list of priorities for fiscal year 2026. This marks a decisive change from the agency's previous focus in 2024 and 2025, where crypto was highlighted as an area of concern.

The SEC's Division of Examinations recently published a 17-page document titled “2026 Examination Priorities,” which outlines the focal points for investment advisers, funds, broker-dealers, and various market utilities. The report emphasizes cross-cutting areas such as information security, operational resilience, identity theft, the revised Regulation S-P, and anti-money laundering efforts.

Notably absent from the document is any reference to cryptocurrency, crypto assets, digital assets, virtual currency, or blockchain technology. This absence is particularly striking given that previous SEC priorities had consistently highlighted crypto in various sections, including those on fintech and anti-money laundering.

In contrast, the 2024 and 2025 priorities explicitly categorized crypto as a significant focus area. For instance, the 2024 priorities included a dedicated section titled “Crypto Assets and Emerging Financial Technology,” which indicated that examinations would prioritize firms involved in crypto assets and related products. Similarly, the 2025 priorities identified crypto assets as a critical risk area, alongside artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, and anti-money laundering, with legal summaries emphasizing ongoing scrutiny of firms providing crypto services.

The following table illustrates the evolution of the SEC's focus on cryptocurrency:

Several contextual elements help to elucidate the timing of this major pivot. In early 2025, the White House shifted its stance, issuing directives aimed at fostering responsible growth and utilization of digital assets. The federal government also decided to scale back its involvement with central bank digital currencies while establishing a President’s Working Group focused on digital asset markets, as summarized by Pillsbury Law in January.

A subsequent fact sheet from March detailed plans for a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and a U.S. digital asset stockpile, positioning cryptocurrency as a strategic asset rather than simply a speculative investment.

At the SEC, Paul S. Atkins was appointed as chair in April 2025. His leadership is associated with a more lenient regulatory approach and a renewed focus on capital formation, as noted by the SEC and legal opinions from Armstrong Teasdale. Additionally, the appointment of Meg Ryan as enforcement director in September has been interpreted by some as an indicator of a potential shift in the enforcement strategy, according to reports from the Financial Times.

Enforcement activities at the SEC have already begun to reflect a departure from the heightened pace seen during the tenure of former chair Gary Gensler. Research from Cornerstone indicated a record-setting 46 crypto-related enforcement actions in 2023, followed by a decline to 33 actions in 2024, representing a decrease of approximately 30% year-over-year.

Overall, the SEC concluded fiscal year 2024 with a total of 583 enforcement actions, down from the previous year. However, financial remedies reached an all-time high of $8.2 billion, largely driven by the settlement with Terraform Labs.

The SEC’s decision to remove cryptocurrency from its 2026 agenda illustrates a significant shift in regulatory priorities. With a renewed focus on other technological elements and a changing political landscape, the implications for the crypto market and its regulatory environment are poised for further evolution.