By: Jennifer R. Gonzalez, Jessica D. Cohn, and William F. Cole
On 30 September 2025, the eve of the government shutdown, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued an order granting the Texas Stock Exchange LLC’s (TXSE) registration as a national security exchange (the Order). TXSE, headquartered in Dallas, is the first national securities exchange to receive SEC approval in decades.
Read MoreBy: Keri E. Riemer, Richard F. Kerr, and Win Gustin
On 30 September 2025, the SEC’s Division of Investment Management (Staff) issued a no-action letter confirming that, with respect to the placement and maintenance of crypto assets, it would not recommend enforcement action if investment advisers, registered investment companies and business development companies (BDC) treated as a “bank” (and thus permitted to custody assets) a trust company organized under state law that is (i) supervised and examined by a state authority with supervision over banks, and (ii) permitted to exercise fiduciary powers under applicable state law (State Trust Company). The relief is subject to various conditions, including the following:
Read MoreBy: Jessica D. Cohn and Yonathan Y. Tewelde
On 25 September 2025, staff from the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Divisions of Examinations, Investment Management, and Trading and Markets hosted a webinar discussing the amendments to Regulation S-P and what to expect when Regulation S-P is in scope of an exam. The amendments, among other things, require brokers, dealers, registered investment advisers, investment companies, and transfer agents (covered institutions) to adopt written policies and procedures for incident response programs to address unauthorized access to or use of customer information, including procedures for providing timely notification to individuals affected by an incident involving sensitive customer information with details about the incident and information designed to help affected individuals respond appropriately.
Read MoreBy: Jessica D. Cohn and Yonathan Y. Tewelde
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) staff will be hosting a webinar on 25 September 2025 regarding the upcoming compliance requirements under the amendments to Regulation S-P. The session is specifically geared toward large firms and is anticipated to cover expectations around incident response programs, including customer notification, the Division of Examinations’ expectations and potential Risk Alerts from the SEC staff.
Read MoreBy: Keri E. Riemer and Richard F. Kerr
Marking a monumental step forward for the launch of crypto asset exchange-traded products (ETPs), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved rule changes by three exchanges to adopt generic listing standards for ETPs that hold spot commodities, including crypto assets. Provided that the ETPs satisfy certain conditions, they will be able to be listed and commence trading more quickly, as their exchanges will not need to submit proposed rule changes for each issuer.
Read MoreBy: Ruth E. Delaney, Robert L. Sichel, and Jennifer L. Klass
On 7 August 2025, President Trump signed an executive order intended to modernize the 401(k) investment universe, directing the Secretary of Labor to clarify the US Department of Labor’s (DOL) position on fiduciary duties in connection with offering products containing exposure to alternative assets to defined contribution plans, such as 401(k) plans, potentially establishing “appropriately calibrated safe harbors” for such investments. The order also directs the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to ease access to alternative assets for such plans by revisiting applicable regulations and guidance, including that related to accredited investor and qualified purchaser status.
Read MoreBy: Rich Kerr and Keri Riemer
On 29 July 2025, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved a proposed rule change to list and trade shares of a multi-crypto asset exchange-traded product (ETP), under NYSE Arca Rule 8.201-E. This marks the first time that the SEC has approved the listing of an ETP that will invest in more than one type of crypto asset on a spot basis; until now, the SEC has only approved listing rules permitting single crypto asset ETPs to be listed. The approved multi-crypto asset ETP (the Trust) will invest in both bitcoin and ether on a spot basis.
Read MoreBy: Rich Kerr, Keri Riemer, Joshua Durham, and Lael Franco
On 29 July 2025, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued an order approving proposed rule changes to permit various exchange-traded products (ETPs) to engage in creations and redemptions of their shares with authorized participants (APs) on an in-kind basis. The proposed rule changes were submitted by the Nasdaq Stock Market LLC, Cboe BZX Exchange, Inc. and NYSE Arca, Inc. (Exchanges) with respect to the ETPs seeking to engage in in-kind creations and redemptions.
Read MoreBy: Keri E. Riemer and Richard F. Kerr
On 17 July 2025, the US House of Representatives passed the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins of 2025, or the GENIUS Act of 2025. The bill establishes a regulatory framework for payment stablecoins (i.e., digital assets which an issuer must redeem for a fixed monetary value).
Read MoreBy: Keri E. Riemer and Richard F. Kerr
As part of its effort to provide greater clarity on the application of federal securities laws to crypto assets, on 1 July 2025, the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance (Division) released a statement (Statement) addressing its views about the application of certain disclosure requirements to crypto asset exchange-traded products (ETPs).
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