SEC includes 'virtual assets' in review priorities for next year

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has included 'virtual assets' in its 2025 examination priority list. Virtual assets, which were excluded from this year's priority list, have been selected as a focus of regulatory attention. According to CoinTelegraph on the 22nd (local time), the SEC has added the review of BTC spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and ETH spot ETFs to its agenda. The SEC had previously approved BTC spot ETFs and ETH spot ETFs in January and April, respectively. Acting Director of the SEC's Division of Examinations, Keith Cassidy, said, "We have prioritized key areas where the risk may be increasing." The SEC is expected to maintain a similar stance towards virtual assets next year as it did this year. The SEC stated that it plans to "focus on proposals, sales, recommendations, advice, trading, and other activities related to virtual assets" and will "continue to monitor and, if necessary, examine operators of related services to address the risks of virtual asset security and distributed ledger technology." The SEC is currently pursuing lawsuits against companies such as Coinbase and Ripple. The SEC has been criticized for filing multiple lawsuits against virtual asset companies on the grounds of unregistered securities offerings.