SEC Signals Crypto Rulemaking Shift With CFTC Collaboration as Trump Backs CLARITY Act

U.S. regulators and political leaders signaled a more constructive turn for crypto this week, as Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Paul Atkins said the agency will work with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to define a U.S. digital-asset classification framework—while President Trump publicly pledged to push forward key crypto legislation despite banking-industry opposition.

Atkins said the SEC is reaffirming its commitment to ‘Project Crypto’ and aims to clarify the criteria used to determine when a token is a security, according to reports citing Odaily. He also indicated the agency is preparing an ‘innovation exemption’ designed to support onchain trading of tokenized securities, a move that would allow certain market structures to develop under tailored regulatory relief rather than relying on informal enforcement outcomes.

Market participants broadly interpreted the remarks as another step away from the SEC’s prior ‘regulation-by-enforcement’ posture and toward rulemaking with clearer boundaries. Analysts said such a shift could reduce compliance uncertainty for exchanges, broker-dealers, and token issuers—conditions that have historically constrained ‘institutional demand’ in the U.S. Bitcoin (BTC) was trading around $77,586, with some traders arguing that improved regulatory clarity could help the market regain momentum toward the $80,000 level. Attention is also turning to expected additional comments from Atkins around late April, when he is scheduled to appear at the Bitcoin 2026 event.

Institutional participation was also underscored in derivatives markets. Open interest in options tied to BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) surpassed the size of the bitcoin options market on Deribit for the first time, highlighting how regulated U.S. venues are increasingly becoming the preferred channel for directional positioning. Data cited by Odaily put IBIT options open interest at $27.61 billion on Friday, above Deribit’s $26.9 billion.

The composition of that activity suggests investors in the U.S. market are not only bullish but also expressing views over longer horizons. Volmex data indicates IBIT call-option buyers were targeting a short-term BTC level near $109,709—roughly 41% above prices around $77,400 at the time—while the most active cluster on Deribit was closer to $106,000. IBIT options also carried an average maturity about two months longer than comparable positioning on Deribit, pointing to longer-dated ‘risk-on’ exposure among regulated-market participants. CoinDesk described the shift as evidence that demand for bitcoin exposure is expanding beyond spot ETFs into listed derivatives as the asset’s ‘institutionalization’ accelerates.

On the policy front, President Trump said the White House would not allow bank lobby groups to weaken the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, commonly referred to as the CLARITY Act, in comments reported by PANews citing CoinDesk. Speaking at a private event at Mar-a-Lago for holders of a Trump-themed memecoin, Trump framed crypto as already mainstream and argued that legacy banks should not obstruct the adoption of stablecoins or the creation of a comprehensive regulatory framework.

The remarks come as parts of the U.S. banking sector have pushed back on stablecoin models—particularly yield-like reward structures—arguing they could pull funds away from traditional deposits. Trump’s public commitment could add political momentum to stalled negotiations and increase expectations that stablecoin and market-structure bills will regain traction in Washington. Attendees at the event reportedly included Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, Ark Invest’s Cathie Wood, and Anchorage Digital CEO Nathan McCauley.

Separately, decentralized finance markets continued to focus on damage control tied to rsETH, following a cross-chain vulnerability linked to KelpDAO. Aave said it has launched a dedicated recovery fund called ‘DeFi United’ aimed at restoring rsETH collateral to 100% and stabilizing affected users, according to panewslab.com. Aave said the initiative is being integrated into governance processes across the Aave DAO and Arbitrum and that technical remediation work is underway in coordination with KelpDAO and LayerZero.

Odaily reported that DeFi United—led by Aave founder Stani Kulechov—began a public fundraising drive on April 18 and has since collected more than 100,000 Ether (ETH), worth over $232 million, from over 85,000 addresses. The effort has also drawn support from major protocols including Lido, ether.fi, and Ethena, with more than 13,500 ETH already deployed toward recovery steps. In parallel, Aave, ether.fi, KelpDAO, LayerZero, and Compound have proposed that Arbitrum DAO release ETH that was frozen by the Arbitrum Security Council after the incident, with the funds earmarked for DeFi United if approved.

Onchain activity added another datapoint for ETH sentiment. An address that had been dormant for roughly 1.6 years bought 3,017 ETH worth about $7 million at an average price near $2,320, according to Odaily citing Onchain Lens. The same wallet accumulated roughly 7,300 ETH—about $17 million—over two days, a flow observers categorized as whale-scale buying, though interpretations remain speculative given the limitations of wallet attribution.

U.S. law enforcement also announced a major sentencing in a high-profile crypto-theft case. The Department of Justice said a 22-year-old California man, Evan Tangeman, was sentenced to 70 months in prison and three years of supervised release for his role in a criminal group accused of stealing roughly $263 million in cryptocurrency using social engineering and home-invasion tactics, per Odaily. Prosecutors said Tangeman admitted to helping launder at least $3.5 million and was also alleged to have attempted to destroy evidence after co-conspirators were arrested. Authorities said proceeds were spent on high-end nightlife and luxury goods including Lamborghinis and Rolex watches. The sentence arrives amid industry tracking that estimated crypto fraud and hacking losses of about $482 million in the first quarter of 2026.

In Asia, Hong Kong police said they dismantled a cross-border phone-scam scheme that used both virtual assets and gold to evade detection, according to Odaily. Investigators said the group impersonated mainland Chinese officials and targeted mainland students studying in the U.K. and Australia, pressuring victims to “cooperate” with fabricated investigations. Victims were directed to Hong Kong jewelry shops to buy gold granules in repeated transactions kept under HK$120,000 to avoid triggering reporting, after which the gold was collected, moved, and reportedly converted into bullion, cash, or crypto. Police said they have identified seven cases totaling about HK$7 million in losses, with the largest single case at HK$1.6 million.

Trump also added to the week’s narrative around official acceptance, stating in a clip shared by journalist Pete Rizzo that Bitcoin “will become mainstream.” While the comment did not include policy specifics, traders and industry lobbyists often view high-profile presidential remarks as reinforcing expectations for broader ‘institutional adoption’ and a friendlier U.S. regulatory posture—even as the timing and substance of legislation remain subject to congressional negotiation.