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U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Proposes Excluding Crypto From Certain OTC Market Rules

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Proposes Excluding Crypto From Certain OTC Market Rules

According to Aptos, a joint SEC-CFTC interpretive statement issued today adds regulatory clarity by recognizing APT as a digital commodity rather than a security, potentially affecting how participants assess the Aptos ecosystem.

APT

Fact Check
The claim is directly confirmed by official U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) documentation. Press Release 2026-28 and Commissioner Hester Peirce's formal statement both confirm that the SEC has proposed amending Rule 15c2-11 to restrict its scope to 'equity securities.' This move is explicitly intended to reverse a 2021 interpretation that had created uncertainty for crypto assets in the over-the-counter (OTC) markets.
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Summary

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission previously proposed revising Exchange Act Rule 15c2-11 to clarify that broker-dealer information review and quotation requirements for over-the-counter markets apply only to equity securities and not to crypto assets. In a related regulatory development, the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission issued a joint interpretation explaining how crypto assets are treated under federal securities laws and emphasizing that most crypto assets are not themselves securities. Aptos said the same joint interpretive statement recognized APT as a digital commodity rather than a security, which the project said provides added clarity for building, investing, and participating in the Aptos ecosystem.

Terms & Concepts
  • crypto assets: Digital assets that use blockchain or related distributed ledger technology; the joint interpretation said most are not themselves securities.
  • securities: Tradable financial instruments regulated under federal securities laws; whether a crypto asset is classified as a security affects which rules and regulators apply.
  • digital commodity: A digital asset treated more like a commodity than a security under the relevant regulatory framework, affecting which rules and agencies may apply.