SEC Trading and Markets Director Selway on Transfer Agent Modernization: Tokenized Securities and the Innovation Exemption
Jamie Selway, Director of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's Division of Trading and Markets, delivered remarks titled “Transfer Portal” on October 29 to the transfer agent industry's annual conference, laying out the Commission's comprehensive proposal to modernize transfer agent rules and inviting feedback on digital identifiers for tokenized securities and on state escheatment laws, according to the full text posted by the SEC.
Selway said the multi-year modernization proposal is meant to update transfer agent registration, recordkeeping, reporting and performance standards, and he asked the industry for feedback, particularly empirical data on costs and benefits. He traced the history back to the 1975 amendments to the Securities Exchange Act, which brought transfer agents into the SEC's ambit, and quoted then-Commissioner John Evans on keeping regulation proper, beneficial and at minimum cost consistent with investor protection.
He highlighted two questions raised by Commissioner Hester Peirce when the proposal was issued: whether transfer agents should be allowed to use digital identifiers such as email or wallet address instead of the traditional name and physical address requirement for tokenized securities, and how to tailor transfer agent rules to the inactivity standards in state escheatment laws.
Under Chairman Atkins, he said, a Division priority is facilitating activity in tokenized securities in a measured fashion that protects investors. The Commission approved the Innovation Exemption on September 17, a five-year conditional exemption from the definition of “exchange” for Tokenized Securities Venues, or TSVs, which allow permissioned participants to trade tokenized NMS stocks via automated market makers; any tokenized NMS stock traded on a TSV must carry the same rights and privileges as the underlying security.
Selway noted that innovators have begun to tokenize assets such as private equity and credit, real estate and treasury repos, and invited the industry to bring regulatory hurdles to the Commission. He said the Commission's rules must be technologically neutral, and that meeting regulatory responsibilities matters more than whether firms operate on- or off-chain. His remarks were delivered in his official capacity and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Commission, the Commissioners or his Division colleagues.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 美国证券交易委员会总部大楼正门（GSM 联邦素材包）
