U.S. regulators’ first joint guidance applying securities laws to different types of crypto tokens fails to provide enough momentum to boost Bitcoin the largest, over $75,000.
Interpretive guidance from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which does not have the weight of a formal rule, separates crypto tokens into five distinct categories: digital commodities, digital collectibles, digital instruments, stablecoins and digital securities and removes a major source of market uncertainty.
The stance marks a shift from existing case-by-case enforcement, clarifying which tokens are considered securities and which are not, and is expected to give issuers and exchanges clarity on how federal law will regulate different assets.
Tagers Capital said: “The net effect is a more coherent regulatory environment and reduced burdens. Legal uncertainty decreases, the risk of retroactive enforcement decreases, and compliance becomes more predictable.”
“This supports institutional engagement, exchange development and product innovation, while improving market structure through lower compliance costs and better price discovery. Although the guidance lacks binding law and still leaves room for case-by-case interpretation, it sets a strong template for future legislation and may accelerate global regulatory convergence.”
Even so, Bitcoin has been unable to build on this month’s rebound from $65,000, with prices approaching $76,000 on Tuesday. The cryptocurrency has been largely unchanged over the past 24 hours.
Price action for other major coins such as XRP (XRP), ether (ETH) and solana (SOL) was also volatile, with the CoinDesk 20 index down 0.3%.
Analysts say $75,000 is a key resistance level for Bitcoin.
“On the upside, $75,400 to $76,000 continues to pose resistance,” Vikram Subburaj, CEO of Indian cryptocurrency exchange Giotus, said in an email. “Bitcoin needs to stay above this range to signal stronger momentum.”
One possible reason for the restrictions could be the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision due later on Wednesday. The Fed is widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged in a range of 3.5% to 3.75%. That has traders focusing less on policymaking and more on interest rate forecasts in the wake of the Iran war-related shock to energy prices.
The interest rate decision, policy statement and economic forecasts will be released at 2 p.m. ET, with Chairman Jerome Powell holding a news conference half an hour later.
