The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has reaffirmed its plan to build a comprehensive cryptocurrency regulatory framework despite legislative uncertainty in Washington.

On Oct. 18, blockchain outlet U.Today reported that SEC Chair Paul Atkins (폴 앳킨스) reiterated on X, formerly Twitter, that he would overhaul the structure of the U.S. cryptocurrency market.

Atkins mentioned the departure of Patrick Witt, executive director of the White House cryptocurrency committee, and said he would continue the Trump administration’s digital asset policy direction. He said Witt’s “tireless leadership” played a key role in advancing President Donald Trump’s vision of “U.S. crypto dominance.” He added that it was a great pleasure to work with Witt.

The key point is that, separate from legislative delays, the SEC will keep pushing to refine the regulatory framework within its own authority. Atkins said, “The SEC will continue the fight to provide a common-sense and comprehensive crypto market structure in the United States.” He also stressed that “such a framework will take Witt’s work one step further and lead to realizing Trump’s plan to make the United States a crypto superpower.”

The remarks came as uncertainty has grown around the CLARITY bill, the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act. The bill aims to clarify regulatory jurisdiction between the SEC and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), but it failed to clear the Senate’s procedural threshold of at least 60 votes on Sept. 15 and was not brought up. As a result, attention is again turning to whether regulatory clarity for cryptocurrencies can be secured through existing federal regulators’ authority rather than congressional legislation.

The SEC has already been working to revise its approach to digital assets under Atkins. Atkins announced temporary regulatory relief measures in September to ease trading in some tokenized stocks. He has also drawn a line, saying additional rulemaking would be needed to create a sustainable crypto regulatory structure.

Changes in staffing on the White House digital asset policy team are also continuing. Witt had played an important role in CLARITY bill discussions, but stepped down as his temporary assignment to the White House ended. Witt’s departure is part of a broader series of senior-level exits from the administration’s digital asset policy team.

In this situation, the SEC’s message is clear. Even if legislation at the congressional level is delayed, it will not leave a vacuum in market discipline. Key points to watch are how far the SEC will go in detailing market-structure rules using its existing authority, and how much it can resolve jurisdictional issues with the CFTC without legislation.