New SEC Definition Includes DeFi Exchanges

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is interested in the fact that the definition of a stock market would now be much broader, also encompassing systems that allow buyers and sellers to communicate their interest in trading this type of asset, which which would include decentralized exchanges (DEX) such as Uniswap, PancakeSwap and many others for bringing together this type of people interested in trading digital currencies.

The measure would require platforms that meet these characteristics to register with the US Securities and Exchange Commission as securities brokers, and since decentralized exchanges would not be able to meet the demands required by this type of license, this could imply the imminent cessation of its operations throughout the United States.

More delicate than it seems

Some analysts and enthusiasts express concern about the possible repercussions this could have for the sectors associated with digital currencies.

In this regard, the DeFi sector enthusiast, Gabriel Shapiro, presented an even more delicate panorama for this type of exchange, since such a definition could also address even block explorers, such as Etherscan, precisely because they allow users to users interact with smart contracts to communicate business interests.

In this sense, it highlights that all this can be interpreted as a restriction on freedom of expression, for which it would be completely unconstitutional.

From a regulatory point of view, the SEC commissioner, Hester Peirce, also expressed her concerns and echoed some aspects mentioned above, placing special emphasis on the broad and diffuse nature of the changes proposed by the entity, which even go far beyond the scope and jurisdiction of the regulatory body.

On the other hand, Peirce criticized the fact that the interested community has very little time to read, understand and consider the proposal, which is not consistent with the implications it could have, since it would be making changes to an ecosystem that moves thousands of million dollars, which it could harm in unforeseen ways.