The WFE recommends standards for any SEC exemptive relief around tokenisation

 

PRESS RELEASE

The WFE recommends standards for any SEC exemptive relief around tokenisation

London, 27 November 2025 - The World Federation of Exchanges (WFE), the global industry association for exchange groups and clearing houses, has asked the Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC) to ensure that crypto firms don’t use the regulator’s broad exemptive relief to circumvent statutory obligations.

While the WFE is supportive of the principle of exemptive relief, we are concerned that the broad use of such relief presents great risks to investors, market integrity, and competition, all of which have negative consequences for US markets.

Exemptive relief from a specific rule or requirement is appropriate where relief is reasonably necessary for a firm to provide a product or service on a level playing field, and where exemptive relief is found to be consistent with the interests of the public and the protection of investors.

If the Commission decides to offer exemptive relief, four standards must be considered:

1. Relief should be in line with four key principles: investor protection, market integrity, fair competition and consistency with international standards.

2. Exemptive orders should be narrow even while we support the Commission’s authority to grant relief where it is appropriate and justified.

3. The Commission should consider time-limiting exemptive relief or, alternatively, introduce stage gates for the deployment and scaling of new products and services, allowing the SEC to assess risks, gather data, and make adjustments before establishing a more permanent framework.

4. Any exemptive relief should be conditional. Among other measures, the Commission could consider the following conditions:

• Recipients remain subject to SEC oversight
• Robust AML requirements are applied
• Clear governance structures are established
• Safeguards, such as asset segregation, are maintained
• A demonstrable commitment to operating fair and orderly markets is upheld.

Nandini Sukumar, CEO of the WFE, said, “Tokenisation is a natural evolution in capital markets. We support innovation where it is pursued responsibly so that neither investors nor market integrity are put at risk. The SEC should avoid granting exemptions to firms attempting to bypass regulatory principles that have safeguarded markets for decades.”

Read the full Letter here.

For more information, please contact:

Cally Billimore

Communications Manager

[email protected]

+44 7391 204 007

About the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE):

Established in 1961, the WFE is the global industry association for exchanges and clearing houses. Headquartered in London, it represents the providers of over 250 pieces of market infrastructure, including standalone CCPs that are not part of exchange groups. Of our members, 37% are in Asia Pacific, 43% in EMEA and 20% in the Americas region. The WFE’s 87 member CCPs and clearing services collectively ensure that risk takers post some USD 1.1 trillion (equivalent) of resources to back their positions, in the form of initial margin and default fund requirements. The exchanges covered by WFE data are home to over 49,054 listed companies, and the market capitalization of these entities is over USD116.58tr; around USD155tr in trading annually passes through WFE members (at end-2024).

The WFE is the definitive source for exchange-traded statistics and publishes over 350 market data indicators. Its free statistics database stretches back 50 years and provides information and insight into developments on global exchanges. The WFE works with standard-setters, policy makers, regulators and government organisations around the world to support and promote the development of fair, transparent, stable and efficient markets. The WFE shares regulatory authorities’ goals of ensuring the safety and soundness of the global financial system.

With extensive experience of developing and enforcing high standards of conduct, the WFE and its members support an orderly, secure, fair and transparent environment for investors; for companies that raise capital; and for all who deal with financial risk. We seek outcomes that maximise the common good, consumer confidence and economic growth. And we engage with policy makers and regulators in an open, collaborative way, reflecting the central, public role that exchanges and CCPs play in a globally integrated financial system.

Website: www.world-exchanges.org

Twitter: @TheWFE

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