Led by the lobby group Crypto Council for Innovation (CCI), nearly 30 crypto companies have urged the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to provide clear regulatory guidance on crypto staking and related services.
The Proof of Stake Alliance (POSA), a CCI initiative, submitted a letter in response to the SEC’s call for public input on whether staking and liquid staking, where crypto users lock up their tokens to earn rewards should fall under federal securities laws.
In the letter, POSA described staking as “the backbone of the decentralized internet” and urged the SEC to support the responsible inclusion of staking features in exchange-traded products (ETPs). The group cautioned against overly prescriptive rules that could hinder market development and stifle innovation in the staking space.
POSA called on the SEC to issue principles-based guidance, similar to recent SEC staff statements on proof-of-work mining. “In the past four months, we’ve seen more movement and constructive dialogue with the SEC than in the past four years,” the group stated. “Now, the industry is stepping up with concrete principles to include in guidance a reflection of this new collaborative approach.”
Several high-profile crypto organizations participated in the letter, including venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, blockchain software company Consensys, and crypto exchange Kraken, which resumed its staking services in the U.S. earlier this year. A move seen by some analysts as a signal of growing confidence in regulatory progress.
