Digital Assets
Digital assets are reshaping global finance, driving innovation across market infrastructure, clearing, and settlement. As technology evolves, so too must the frameworks that support investor protection, financial stability, and fair competition.
SIFMA and its members are engaging with policymakers and regulators to ensure that digital asset markets develop in a safe, transparent, and well-regulated manner – one that promotes efficiency and innovation while maintaining the same trusted safeguards that define U.S. capital markets.
Key Focus Areas
Advancing Responsible Adoption
Distributed ledger technology (DLT) and tokenization offer new, cost-efficient ways to issue, trade, and settle securities. Tokenized securities – digital representations of traditional securities – have the potential to streamline market operations and reduce friction.
SIFMA’s member working groups are identifying key policy questions around the application of decentralized trading models to tokenized securities markets to help firms adopt these innovations responsibly while protecting investors and preserving confidence.
Developing Clear Regulatory Frameworks
A consistent regulatory framework is essential for digital asset market growth. SIFMA advocates coordination among prudential and market regulators to reduce fragmentation, promote competitive equity, and ensure a level playing field.
We have called on the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision to refine its approach to the prudential treatment of cryptoasset exposures—enabling regulated financial institutions to participate in these markets safely and effectively.
Extending Investor Protections to New Markets
SIFMA believes that existing, well-established securities laws provide a strong foundation for regulating digital assets. In our response to the SEC Crypto Task Force, we emphasized four guiding principles:
- Apply robust investor protections to digital assets;
- Use existing, well-understood securities regulatory principles;
- Maintain a technology-neutral approach; and
- Ensure risk-equivalent regulation for digital and traditional assets alike.
Fostering Industry–Regulator Dialogue
As adoption accelerates, ongoing engagement between industry participants and regulators is essential. SIFMA continues to convene members and policymakers to discuss operational readiness, risk management, and the policy frameworks needed to enable responsible innovation across the digital asset ecosystem.
The Bottom Line
Digital assets represent a pivotal evolution in the capital markets. Through thoughtful regulation, global coordination, and continued dialogue, SIFMA is working to ensure that innovation enhances efficiency, transparency, and investor protection – strengthening U.S. markets for the future.
