SEC Commissioner: Pledge activities are not within the jurisdiction of securities laws

According to the official blog of pledge service provider Figment, Commissioner Hester Peirce, head of the US Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) Cryptography Working Group, made it clear in a speech on May 19th that technical activities directly involved in Proof of Stake (PoS) and Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS) systems are not subject to securities law jurisdiction. This is the first time a senior SEC official has made such a statement regarding pledge activities. Peirce pointed out that the SEC will issue further guidance to clarify which activities are not subject to securities laws, including technical services that assist in participating in consensus mechanisms. She admitted that the SEC's past enforcement and regulatory methods have failed to effectively prevent fraud and have instead caused confusion for compliant operators. This statement is seen as a positive signal of US institutions participating in pledge activities. Figment suggests that this will drive American institutions to adopt pledge services more widely.