Lately, the SEC formally acknowledged that the Proof-of-Work (PoW) mining mechanism shouldn’t be categorised as a safety, offering higher regulatory readability for this know-how. This can be a constructive sign not just for Bitcoin – the world’s main cryptocurrency – but in addition for PoW-based altcoin ETFs.
Latest transfer from SEC
In a newly launched assertion, the U.S. Securities and Trade Fee (SEC) clarified its stance on securities laws regarding cryptocurrency mining below the Proof-of-Work mechanism.
Particularly, the SEC determines that each solo mining and pool mining don’t represent securities transactions below U.S. securities legal guidelines. The mined crypto property, termed “Covered Crypto Assets,” don’t meet the standards to be categorised as securities. PoW mining is a decentralized community governance exercise, the place rewards rely upon computational energy and miners’ participation, not on the entrepreneurial or managerial efforts of third events.
JUST IN: 🇺🇸 SEC publishes steerage on proof of labor mining 👀 pic.twitter.com/YSKhrESy4Q
— Bitcoin Journal (@BitcoinMagazine) March 20, 2025
The SEC emphasizes that this assertion goals to supply transparency and readability to the cryptocurrency trade, notably amid rising regulatory questions. It notes that these actions don’t require SEC registration below present securities legal guidelines, so long as they don’t contain issuing or promoting property as funding contracts. Nevertheless, the SEC leaves room for case-by-case analysis if extra components, corresponding to fraud or differing transaction constructions, come up. General, this assertion marks a major step in lowering authorized uncertainty for PoW mining members, whereas reaffirming the SEC’s principled method to blockchain know-how.
Be taught extra: SEC Declares Memecoins Are Not Securities
Open door for ETF altcoin
Since President Trump took workplace, he has pushed for reforms in U.S. monetary regulators, together with the SEC and CFTC, urging them to ease crypto laws. Quickly, the SEC is ready to nominate Paul Atkins, a pro-crypto advocate, as its new chairman.
At present, below Appearing Chairman Mark Uyeda, the SEC has established a devoted crypto process drive and restructured its personnel. Particularly, the SEC lately dropped lawsuits in opposition to a number of crypto corporations, together with OpenSea, Coinbase, Robinhood, Cumberland KRW, Consensys (MetaMask), Kraken, Yuga Labs, BitClout, Uniswap, and Ripple.

Supply: Swyftx Be taught
Moreover, this newest transfer by the SEC indicators higher regulatory readability for blockchain know-how and Proof-of-Work (PoW). This might pave the best way for the approval of Bitcoin and different PoW-based altcoin ETFs, corresponding to Litecoin and Dogecoin, within the close to future—property that have already got a excessive chance of approval this yr.