The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has established a new cryptocurrency task force aimed at developing comprehensive regulations for digital assets, marking a significant shift from its previous enforcement-focused approach.

Acting chairman Mark T. Uyeda announced the initiative on Monday, appointing commissioner Hester Peirce to lead the effort. Richard Gabbert and Taylor Asher will serve as chief of staff and chief policy advisor respectively.

The SEC acknowledged that its historical reliance on enforcement actions has created an unfavourable environment for innovation. "To date, the SEC has relied primarily on enforcement actions to regulate crypto retroactively and reactively, often adopting novel and untested legal interpretations along the way," the agency stated.

The task force's primary objectives include establishing clear regulatory guidelines, creating practical registration pathways, and improving disclosure standards. It will work alongside Congress, federal agencies including the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and international regulators.

"I look forward to the efforts of Commissioner Peirce to lead regulatory policy on crypto, which involves multiple SEC divisions and offices," said Uyeda.

Peirce emphasised the collaborative nature of the initiative: "This undertaking will take time, patience, and much hard work. It will succeed only if the Task Force has input from a wide range of investors, industry participants, academics, and other interested parties."

The announcement has received positive feedback from industry leaders. Stuart Alderoty, chief legal officer at Ripple, welcomed the change in approach, noting on social media platform X that the SEC's previous stance had created "confusion about what is legal" and "an environment hostile to innovation."

The crypto market responded favourably to the news, with Bitcoin rising 2.4 per cent to more than $106,000.

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