The US is shifting toward lighter, innovation-friendly crypto regulation, with moves like the FIT21 Act, a repeal of SAB 121 and a more lenient SEC approach.

, but the rules governing it remain a tangled web of state laws, federal agency guidelines and developing court rulings. With the US moving toward clearer policies, crypto investors and innovators are left navigating a fragmented regulatory space. This article discusses current US crypto regulations, explores major regulatory challenges and the country’s stance on crypto, and examines the relevance of current US rules to traders and the larger industry.

Crypto regulations are legal frameworks set by governments to manage the creation, trading, taxation and use of digital assets. These regulations aim to protect consumers, prevent illegal activities and maintain market integrity.

The US regulatory stance on cryptocurrency in 2025 is moving toward greater clarity and support for innovation, though a unified federal framework is still in the works. 

, passed by the House of Representatives in 2024, aims to establish comprehensive rules for digital assets but has yet to be fully implemented. Signaling a more crypto-friendly direction, the Trump administration issued an 

 in January 2025 to create the President’s Working Group on Digital Asset Markets, with the goal of “providing regulatory clarity and certainty.” Chaired by David Sacks, the group is tasked with reviewing current laws and recommending reforms to encourage responsible innovation.

Federal agencies are gradually shifting their approach. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), traditionally strict with crypto enforcement, has formed a dedicated 

. This group is working to simplify registration processes, outline disclosure expectations and provide clarity as to which tokens qualify as securities. Notably, the SEC has softened its stance on certain categories of cryptocurrencies, such as 

, indicating they may no longer be treated as securities.

Banking regulators have also relaxed their oversight. The Federal Reserve 

 prior guidance requiring banks to notify regulators before engaging in crypto-related activities, opting instead for standard supervisory oversight. Likewise, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has 

 that banks can participate in permissible crypto activities without prior approval as long as they manage risks appropriately.

State-level regulations, however, remain highly fragmented. 

 with crypto-friendly policies, offering clear licensing and legal protections that attract 

 businesses. In contrast, some states still maintain stricter or underdeveloped frameworks, resulting in a regulatory patchwork that complicates compliance for companies operating across state lines.

In other developments, the federal government has launched the 

, an unprecedented move that integrates digital assets into national infrastructure planning. While this initiative signals strong institutional interest, it also introduces new compliance challenges for both government agencies and market participants.

What regulatory issues exist for cryptocurrency?

Cryptocurrency regulation in the US in 2025 continues to grapple with several persistent challenges, despite efforts to establish clearer frameworks. 

Why this matters for crypto traders and the industry

As crypto matures from the fringes of finance into the mainstream, clear rules and oversight are needed to protect individuals and to nurture a stable, trustworthy ecosystem that benefits everyone involved.

The US is transitioning toward a pro-innovation crypto regime, with emphasis on deregulation, legislative clarity and strategic asset management. Its nascent administration has signaled a significant departure from the previous enforcement-heavy approach, prioritizing regulatory clarity and industry growth. Key actions include the January 2025 executive order establishing an interagency task force to review and potentially rescind restrictive regulations, alongside the SEC’s dismissal of high-profile cases against Coinbase, Robinhood Crypto and OpenSea. 

Meanwhile, the SEC’s Crypto Task Force, led by Hester M. Peirce, aims to streamline registration paths for tokens and clarify jurisdictional boundaries, particularly for meme coins, which the SEC no longer classifies as securities. In addition, the 

 removes barriers for banks offering crypto custody services, thus encouraging institutional participation.

Bipartisan efforts are gaining momentum in the push to formalize crypto oversight, with stablecoin regulation leading the charge. Key proposals like the 

 are pushing for requirements such as 1:1 reserves, regular audits and greater transparency from issuers, bringing stablecoins more in line with traditional financial standards. 

 and SEC are working out jurisdictional boundaries, and Congress is expected to pass market structure legislation that will determine whether crypto assets are classified as securities or commodities. These moves are designed to reduce the regulatory landscape’s current fragmentation, as stablecoins now face a patchwork of state-level regulations that drive up compliance costs.

The US federal government is moving toward a clearer and more innovative crypto regulatory regime, making efforts to streamline oversight, push institutional adoption and integrate digital assets into economic strategy. However, until federal policies fully align and state differences are reconciled, the regulatory environment for crypto in the US remains complex and dynamic. Traders and industry players need to understand this complex but maturing environment in order to navigate risks and grab emerging opportunities.

Intermediate

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Crypto regulations in the US: Navigating a complex landscape

Reports following Ether's landmark surge on May 7, 2025 largely attribute this rally to the completion of the Pectra upgrade.

Ether has recently regained its status as the crypto golden boy, leading a rally since May 7, 2025 that’s outpaced both Bitcoin and most altcoins. This unusual performance has prompted market observers to speculate on the reasons behind it, and whether this impressive trend will continue.

The ETH/BTC ratio has been declining since January 2024, when the SEC 

In Q1 2025, disappointment in Ether's performance reached its peak, driven by market drawdowns and concerns about Ethereum Foundation leadership, leading to a significant exit of investors from the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency. However, on May 7, 2025, the market narrative changed abruptly as Ether surged over 20% in just one day.

Reports following Ether's landmark surge on May 7, 2025 largely attribute this rally to the completion of the 

 upgrade. While the timing of the upgrade coincides perfectly with Ether's rebound, however, this view doesn't capture the full story.

Historically, the ETH/BTC ratio began to rebound two months before the official completion of 

. Similarly, the Pectra upgrade had been anticipated for some time. Despite its smooth execution, the market had low expectations regarding challenges in Q1 2025.

Moreover, Ether's resurgence coincided with BTC surpassing $100,000, as broader risk assets rallied due to positive developments in US tariff negotiations with the UK and China.

In summary, the overall asset rally triggered Ether's rise, while the Pectra upgrade enhanced its performance against Bitcoin. Additionally, Ether's strong outperformance over other altcoins likely resulted from significant short liquidations.

In the days following Ether's record rally, ETH experienced over $500 million in short liquidations. This phenomenon significantly contributed to the unusual surge of more than 20% in a single day for a leading token such as Ether.

The most common criticism of Ethereum is that it loses revenue to 

 (DEXs) for Ether has consistently declined, partly due to competition from other 

 blockchains such as Solana, as well as Ethereum's own L2 networks. Since most L2 solutions have their own utility tokens, the activities conducted on these platforms don’t directly generate fees for L1, since they bundle transactions and post them to the Ethereum Mainnet.

This dilemma doesn’t appear to have a quick fix. In the medium term, Ethereum’s key value proposition may need to shift from that of a profit-generating blockchain with a 

 asset to one that functions as a financial instrument that’s akin to a bond.

Ethereum’s staking feature has yet to face direct competition, and the amount staked within the ecosystem continues to grow. As of Q1 2025, approximately 34 million ETH are staked, yielding an annual return of 2.9%.

Ongoing developments in Hong Kong and Canada may allow ETH Spot ETFs to incorporate staking features. Notably, the Pectra upgrade increases the staking limit for each node from 32 ETH to 2048 ETH, which could incentivize ETF issuers to operate their own nodes in the future. Adding staking rewards to ETH Spot ETFs could enhance their attractiveness, especially as the Fed eventually returns interest rates to more typical levels.

With a 2.9% return on Ether staking, Ether is increasingly positioned as a bond-like investment.

Ethereum’s leadership change and future outlook

Vitalik Buterin’s recent proposals for Ethereum

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently 

 his vision for simplifying Ethereum's Layer 1 in a post titled 

, emphasizing that scalability alone is insufficient: Ethereum must also be understandable, maintainable and secure in order to reliably serve as a platform for civilization’s assets. Buterin proposes a significant reduction in complexity, aiming for an Ethereum that will be as simple (within five years) as Bitcoin is now. He believes that a simpler protocol will enhance security, attract more developers and facilitate easier upgrades.

To achieve this, Buterin introduces a beam chain proposal that aims to streamline consensus by reducing technical complexity, eliminating epochs and sync committees, simplifying fork choice rules and enhancing the validator lifecycle for easier onboarding and recovery. He advocates replacing the current Ethereum virtual machine (EVM) with RISC-V, a more efficient, general-purpose virtual machine. This transition promises a clearer specification that will reduce bugs and maintenance challenges; more flexibility for developers to use various programming languages; and the potential to increase throughput by 100 times.

To address existing applications, Buterin suggests a phased transition that introduces RISC-V precompiles and allows dual deployment options during the shift, gradually moving legacy features out of the core protocol to keep it lean. He also calls for standardizing tools within the network to reduce redundancy and complexity, proposing a unified encoding system, shared data splitting methods and a simpler state structure. Ultimately, Buterin believes that regaining simplicity is essential in order for Ethereum to maintain its flexibility and durability as it scales.

With a new road map for Ethereum and proposed leadership 

 to the Ethereum Foundation to make the Ethereum guardian more accessible, we believe Ethereum has more upside coming.

Advanced

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Bybit Crypto Insights Report: Is Ether regaining favor? How far will it go?

Unichain, Uniswap’s L2 network, now handles over 76% of Uniswap v4 volume, driven by UNI incentives and its new Rollup-Boost feature. 

The S&P 500 jumped 3.26% as US-China tariff easing lifted market sentiment. Investors now await CPI and retail data for signs of inflation trends under the new trade regime. Gold fell near $3,208 as easing US-China trade tensions reduced safe-haven demand. With CPI data ahead, further downside is likely. Technicals suggest bearish momentum, with key support at $3,202. The Coindesk Indices, which tracks the broader crypto market, fell 1.97%, with Bitcoin and Ether down 2.53% and 0.95%, in the past 24 hours. Trade these markets and more with up to 500x leverage on Bybit MT5 using this 

Today's top performer is RUNE, which surged by 4.4% following the completion of Halborn's security audit for Rujira Network's omnichain DeFi layer on THORChain.

THORChain (RUNE), created in 2018, is a decentralized protocol enabling native asset swaps across blockchains without wrapping. Built on Cosmos SDK and Tendermint, it uses Proof-of-Stake and Byzantine Fault Tolerance for secure cross-chain transactions. Halborn has 

 a smart contract security audit for Rujira Network, which is building an omnichain DeFi app layer on THORChain. Rujira enables seamless access to DeFi apps using native assets across connected chains.

Check out the latest prices, charts, and data of 

Unichain, Uniswap’s L2 network, now handles over 76% of Uniswap v4 volume, driven by UNI incentives and its new Rollup-Boost feature. This upgrade enhances MEV handling, cuts failed transaction gas costs, and sets the stage for Flashblocks—an upcoming 200ms block time system. Despite v4’s growth, Uniswap v3 still leads in total volume. The aim of Unichain is to solve Ethereum mainnet and L2 liquidity fragmentation while improving speed and decentralization.

Yesterday, BTC spot ETFs saw total outflows of $64.2 million, with $32.9 million from GBTC and $31.3 million from all other ETFs combined.

Multipli’s Season 1 has ended with 359.2M ORBs distributed (50% of supply). 

, allocating 30% of ORBs. Users can continue earning by keeping funds on mainnet or testnet—no action required. New users can join via testnet (free) or deposit stablecoins on BSC/Ethereum.

Beginner

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Unichain leads Uniswap v4 activity with rollup-boost upgrade and upcoming flashblocks feature

Ethereum surged 29% this week, breaking a 10-week downtrend and catching short sellers off guard with $400M liquidated. 

The S&P 500 extended its rally with a nine-day winning streak, its longest since 2004, as optimism over potential trade deals and upcoming Fed and earnings updates lifted sentiment. Gold rose to $3,245 on trade uncertainty and Fed rate cut hopes. CoinDesk Indices, which tracks the broader crypto market, fell 1.50% in the past 24 hours, while Bitcoin and Ether dropped 0.10% and 0.51%, respectively. Trade these markets and more with up to 500x leverage on Bybit MT5 using this 

Today's top performer is AI16Z, which surged 7.0% after Bonsai's smart media protocol integrated with Eliza to empower agent-driven social content creation.

elizaOS (AI16Z), launched in October 2024, formerly ai16z, is a Solana-based DApp that uses a DAO and an AI agent, "Marc AIndreessen," to manage community-driven investments in tech and crypto projects. 

, lets developers create agent-driven social media scripts and templates using ElizaOS plugins. The Bonsai Client, its first implementation, enables easy deployment of these smart media agents on platforms like Lens. Builders can explore these tools and compete for prizes in the Lens Spring Hackathon.

Ethereum surged 29% this week, breaking a 10-week downtrend and catching short sellers off guard with $400M liquidated. Despite muted ETF flows and neutral derivatives sentiment, ETH’s dominance remains unshaken—boasting $64B in TVL, dwarfing Solana, BNB Chain, and Tron combined. With fresh momentum from the recent pectra upgrades and Trump distancing from rival altcoins, all eyes are now on a potential push toward $2,700. 

BTC spot ETFs saw $920.9M in net inflows this week, driven by $1.09B into non-GBTC funds despite $171.5M outflows from GBTC. Since inception, total net inflows stand at $41.1B.

 are now live and claimable as a small bonus for users farming the upcoming Aster (AST) airdrop. By depositing BNB to mint asBNB, users can start earning points toward both the main airdrop and future ecosystem rewards. Optional perp trading can boost points further, but simply holding asBNB is enough to qualify.

Ethereum outperforms with a 20% rally as fresh capital flows in and undervaluation signals flash

Bybit Learn

.SWOOSH is Nike’s web3 marketplace that supports the sale of its virtual apparel and footwear. Find out more about its latest airdrop here.

Top-rated brands have historically embraced the future and moved to be at the head of the pack with innovations and advancements. Largely, brands like Nike and others have focused exclusively on selling their physical products, but this is changing: 

 are digital assets that have been used as collectibles, in 

 and for other digital purposes. While there has been a promise from some NFT creators to add real-life utility to their collections, this has largely been unrealized. However, Nike hopes to change this with its first digital sneaker collection on its .SWOOSH platform.

By interweaving virtual and physical products together, .SWOOSH may be Nike’s future. Its marketplace allows .SWOOSH community members to trade and collect the brand’s virtual products. In addition, .SWOOSH members can create new collections and earn 

 on sales. Via this utility, the .SWOOSH community can directly participate in the brand’s future. In addition, .SWOOSH virtual products may grant access to real-life events, including the possibility of pre-ordering the latest styles of physical shoes.

The .SWOOSH platform was developed by Nike Virtual Studios and was originally launched in November 2022. Ron Faris, who contributed to the development of the 

 app, heads the division as VP/GM. The purpose of .SWOOSH is to support Nike’s web3 creators. Nike got behind the concept for this project after making $185 million in 

 and $90 million in royalties from its first NFTs in August 2022. While the platform initially had the exclusive utility of allowing new community members with a Nike-provided access code to sign up, it’s now closer to fulfilling its intended purpose of being an NFT marketplace.

The .SWOOSH developers want to bring Nike into the future with a unique web3 experience. More than that, they aim to enhance the customer experience by offering access to exclusive physical products and experiences to owners of NFT sneaker boxes. These boxes also support creative innovation by allowing users to create their own collections and earn related royalties. 

Thus far, many people who aren’t active web3 users have shied away from NFTs, possibly from fear of being caught in a scam because the process is too complicated or for other reasons. With .SWOOSH, Nike wants to simplify the process and bring NFTs into the mainstream. It prevents related scams through the use of its own .nike domain and takes some of the confusion out of the equation by completing transactions in U.S. currency. In addition, the future utility of the sneaker boxes could support pre-ordering new-release physical shoes, as well as providing other real-life benefits.

In order to use the .SWOOSH features, you must be a member of the community. After completing the membership process, you can browse through the virtual products and make your selections. All purchases can be completed with a standard debit or credit card in U.S. currency. As a web3 platform, .SWOOSH transactions are logged on the 

. Two types of NFT sneaker boxes are available through the brand’s first airdrop, offering creative possibilities as well as access to exclusive experiences and physical products.

.SWOOSH membership isn’t currently open to the general public. During this closed beta phase, only those who have a special access code can join. However, if you don't have an access code, you can join the .SWOOSH waitlist. On the 

 link to access your new profile. Once you see the 

 page, you can follow the process to join the waitlist. When you’re granted membership, you’ll receive a .SWOOSH ID, which gives you access to Create and Trade functions.

Nike is slowly rolling out the platform, including both access and available digital products. As part of its ramp-up process, it’s hosting educational sessions in select cities. Additional educational resources will be publicized on Nike’s blog and its Instagram profile.

The .SWOOSH platform was initially released in its beta version in November 2022. At that time, Nike Virtual Studios announced that it would be a web3 platform for digital collectibles as well as an educational resource. To add utility to these virtual sneaker collectibles, the company has also stated that the .SWOOSH collectibles will be usable in various immersive experiences and games. 

In January 2023, Nike Virtual Studios hosted a 

 for .SWOOSH users. Specifically, .SWOOSH members were asked to create an Instagram storyboard of their sneaker designs, and the winner of the contest would receive a $5,000 prize. The designs of four participants are now featured in the new NFT collection.

.SWOOSH is being carefully unveiled at a slow pace, and access to membership will gradually be opened to the general public. Concurrently, .SWOOSH will expand its utility and appeal. For example, a possible update down the line could include digital storefronts for individual athletes.

With the recent release of the new .SWOOSH platform, Nike’s foray into the metaverse will soon be followed by the launch of its virtual sneaker collection, known as OF1 (or 

On Apr 18, 2023, .SWOOSH will airdrop OF1 posters that pay homage to the Air Force 1 marketing campaign from several decades ago. These posters will also commemorate the new OF1 digital sneaker collection. A total of 106,453 OF1 posters will be airdropped to the .SWOOSH community. This means that approximately one out of every three .SWOOSH users will receive a poster. Those who receive one can take advantage of OF1’s early access sale on May 8, 2023. Access for the full .SWOOSH community will be available on May 10, 2023. 

There are two types of digital collectibles available for the new digital sneaker collection: the New Wave and Classic Remix sneaker boxes. In honor of the release date for the Air Force 1 sneakers, the price of the New Wave and Classic Remix sneaker boxes is $19.82. Notably, each sneaker box NFT will have utility, such as for creative expression, access to exclusive physical products and more. 

According to Nike Virtual Studios, these exclusive physical products will combine with special experiences and other benefits to expand the overall experience of .SWOOSH users. Those who own .SWOOSH digital collectibles will also have the opportunity to earn royalties by creating their own .SWOOSH collections

Who Is Eligible to Receive the .SWOOSH Airdrop?

.SWOOSH community members who have previously co-created with Nike will be eligible to receive an OF1 poster from Nike. This includes 

Members who’ve registered through Nike’s DEI (

) and SCI (Social Community and Impact) partnership organizations will also receive their own OF1 posters.

The rest of the available posters will be airdropped to .SWOOSH members in a fair and randomized process. However, in order to be eligible, you need to be fully onboarded to the .SWOOSH platform with a .SWOOSH ID as of the snapshot taken on Apr 12, 2023, 12:00PM PST. Not sure if you’re eligible? No worries — you can verify this information on 

As an added layer of verification, .SWOOSH will be sending an airdrop confirmation email to all eligible community members. Simply look out for the email from 

If you’ve missed out on the airdrop this time, don’t worry, as Nike has stashed 82 posters away in a Nike-owned wallet, with plans to distribute them in the form of giveaways and rewards in the future. You can join the waitlist today and still get a chance to win.

Are Nike .SWOOSH’s OF1 Boxes a Good Investment?

Since it’s a new web3 platform, the utility of .SWOOSH is still in development. Since Nike is still rolling out the platform’s features and membership access, the timeline for many details hasn’t been released. However, the platform has tremendous potential, and Nike’s intentional rollout indicates that it’s dedicated to making .SWOOSH a success. 

OF1 is the first digital sneaker collection available on .SWOOSH, so in addition to offering exciting utility, there’s potential for the value of these NFTs to increase as well. Given the fact that only a select group of people have the ability to purchase OF1 Boxes initially, and with the membership base expected to grow substantially, demand for these NFTs is likely to grow as well. With these key factors in mind, OF1 Boxes may be a great investment.

Nike has a longstanding history of breaking barriers and is poised to continue on this path with its focus on combining virtual and physical products and experiences through .SWOOSH. If you aren’t one of the early users of .SWOOSH, you can join the waitlist today.

.SWOOSH: All About Nike's Web3 Marketplace & Latest Airdrop

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