As we go deeper into 2026, the mantra is going to be ‘Prepare for the future, the crypto market is opening’, but first let’s take a look at what’s been happening in the long month of February.
Speaking at the DC Blockchain Summit March 16-20 during DC Blockchain Week and joining the UK Parliamentary Delegation to meet with SEC Chairman Paul Atkins and Commissioner Hester Peirce to push for a single crypto market framework for the US and the UK,
February was a month where the regulatory machine went from warming up to full throttle. In the US, the SEC and CFTC are now formally operating as a team under Project Crypto, the SEC laid out its most comprehensive crypto agenda yet, and the first tokenized money market fund got the green light for 24/7 trading. Meanwhile, the UK closed its landmark consultations on crypto regulation and launched a stablecoin sandbox. The message from both sides of the Atlantic: the crypto market is opening for mainstream consumers, and regulators want to be ready.
***Key Highlight: On Feb. 18, SEC Chairman Paul S. Atkins and Commissioner Hester M. Peirce delivered joint remarks laying out the SEC’s full 2026 crypto regulatory agenda — including guidance on when tokens stop being securities, “innovation exemptions” for on-chain trading, and a vision for “super-app” platforms where you can trade crypto, securities, and stake all under one roof. This is the clearest roadmap yet for how everyday crypto holders will be able to interact with regulated markets.***
• When tokens stop being securities: The SEC will issue guidance clarifying when crypto assets constitute investment contracts and — critically — when tokens may “shed” their securities status as networks mature and decentralize. This matters because it creates a path for tokens to move from heavy SEC regulation to lighter-touch CFTC oversight.
• Broker-dealer custody of non-security crypto and stablecoins: New rulemaking that will expand how traditional financial firms can hold your crypto.
SEC & CFTC Confirm Joint Approach Under Project Crypto (Feb. 11)
Chairman Atkins testified before the House Financial Services Committee and confirmed that the SEC and CFTC are formally collaborating through Project Crypto to develop a token taxonomy — essentially a shared rulebook for what’s a security, what’s a commodity, and what’s neither. Atkins expressed support for the CLARITY Act and said the SEC is ready to implement it as soon as it passes. The CFTC’s Chairman Selig has folded the CFTC’s own “Crypto Sprint” into Project Crypto, making this a truly unified effort.
Why this matters for you: A clear token taxonomy means less uncertainty about which of your holdings are regulated and how. It also means exchanges will have clearer rules for listing tokens — which should mean more choice and better consumer protection.
The Joint Harmonization Event (Jan. 29)
The SEC/CFTC joint event at CFTC headquarters in Washington went deeper into specifics. CFTC Chairman Selig outlined priorities including expanding eligible tokenized collateral, creating pathways for perpetual derivatives products onshore, and clarifying rules for retail leveraged crypto trading. He also signaled interest in safe harbors for software developers and DeFi protocols — acknowledging that not every piece of on-chain software needs to be regulated as a financial intermediary. Both chairs emphasized that enforcement-only crypto policy is over and that rulemaking, principles-based oversight, and “minimum effective” regulation are the tools going forward.
Key Takeaway for Vault12 Customers:
The SEC’s 2026 agenda is explicitly designed to bring more crypto assets and services into the regulated mainstream. When Chairman Atkins talks about “super-app” platforms, tokens shedding securities status, and innovation exemptions for on-chain trading, he’s describing a world where your crypto portfolio becomes easier to manage through regulated channels — but also potentially more complex from an inheritance and estate planning perspective. More tokens. More platforms. More staking. More ways your crypto wealth can grow — and more reasons to make sure your family has a plan to access it.
The UK made significant strides toward building its own comprehensive crypto regulatory framework this month, with a clear focus on consumer protection and stablecoin innovation. While we criticise the UKs regulatory agency, the FCA, for being slow, it is to be remembered that when their process is complete, then everything that is needed to operate these new regulations will also be complete - unlike in the US where once the Market Structure Bill is signed, there will be months of rule making before it is operational. So maybe we will see a heated rivalry end in a tie.
Three Landmark Consultations Closed (Feb. 12)
The FCA’s three major consultation papers — CP25/40 (trading platforms, intermediaries, staking, DeFi), CP25/41 (admissions, disclosures, and market abuse), and CP25/42 (prudential requirements for crypto firms) — all closed for feedback on February 12. Together with HM Treasury’s statutory instrument laid in December 2025, these form the blueprint for the UK’s first comprehensive crypto regulatory regime. The FCA plans to publish final rules later in 2026, with the new regime expected to come into force in October 2027. Firms wanting to apply for authorization will have a window from September 2026 to February 2027.
What the consultations covered that matters for retail consumers:
• Trading platform rules: Requirements for how crypto trading platforms operate, including rules around direct retail access, conflicts of interest, and transparency.
• Token admission and disclosure: Rules for listing crypto assets on platforms and what information firms must provide to investors — so consumers can make informed decisions about what they’re buying.
• Market abuse regime: The UK’s first formal framework to prevent and detect insider trading and manipulation in crypto markets.
• Staking regulation: Requirements to make sure risks are clearly communicated when firms offer staking services.
• DeFi: The FCA acknowledged that genuinely decentralized arrangements may fall outside the regulatory perimeter but set out factors for assessing what counts as “sufficiently decentralized.”
Property (Digital Assets etc) Act 2025 — Still Important
As a reminder from our January edition, the UK’s new law formally recognizing digital assets as personal property means crypto tokens and related rights can be included in wills and probate proceedings in the same way as physical property. This legal clarity is foundational for crypto inheritance planning in the UK.
Key Takeaway for Vault12 Customers:
The UK is building its regime from scratch, and consumer protection is baked in from the start — not bolted on afterwards. The FCA’s approach to trading platforms, disclosure requirements, and staking regulation is explicitly aimed at retail investors having clear, transparent information. For UK-based Vault12 customers, the recognition of digital assets as personal property under the 2025 Act and the incoming regulatory regime make it more important than ever to have a proper inheritance plan for your crypto. As stablecoins become regulated payment instruments and more crypto platforms become authorized, the assets in your Vault are increasingly part of the recognized financial system — and should be treated accordingly.
Let us know if you have a favourite exchange who should power inheritance for their customers using Vault12 (for less than a dollar a day). Don’t forget to send a message to your crypto platform provider, recommending Vault12.
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I’m now a producer for an upcoming movie, “The Bitcoin Executor” - it tells the story of an economics professor named Ken who becomes the executor of a will for Dr. Dean Sinautra, a friend and colleague who has mysteriously disappeared.
Although philosophically opposed, Ken takes on the task of personally delivering a set of Bitcoin hardware wallets to Dean’s chosen heirs. In the process Ken attempts to find clues that could solve the mystery of Dean’s disappearance. The discoveries made along the way force him to question the things he thought he knew so well.
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