Crypto Happens: From Spot Trading to Tokenization Gains Clarity
What Compliance Teams Need to Know
The landscape for spot crypto trading is changing rapidly, and compliance teams need to stay ahead of the curve. The recent joint staff statement from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on September 2, 2025 marked a pivotal moment in the evolution of digital asset markets. By clarifying that SEC-registered national securities exchanges and CFTC-registered contract markets may facilitate trading in certain spot crypto commodity products—even when leveraged or margined—the agencies signaled a new willingness to coordinate and provide market participants with greater choice. For compliance teams, this is both a tremendous opportunity and a new set of challenges.
Clarity on Spot Crypto Trading
For years, spot crypto trading operated in a regulatory gray zone, largely confined to unregulated or offshore venues. The SEC–CFTC statement makes it clear that existing laws do not prohibit regulated U.S. exchanges from listing and trading certain spot crypto asset products. This affirmation, which builds on White House recommendations, opens the door for mainstream exchanges to bring crypto into the regulated national market system.
For compliance leaders, the implications are significant. The agencies have emphasized that any expansion into spot crypto must maintain robust surveillance, custody, and disclosure practices. That means firms will need to ensure their monitoring and reporting frameworks are as rigorous for digital assets as they are for traditional securities.
The 24/7 Markets Vision
In addition to clarifying spot crypto oversight, the SEC and CFTC are exploring the concept of round-the-clock financial markets. Inspired by the always-on nature of crypto, the agencies are considering a 24/7 Markets policy that could extend trading hours for traditional securities. A joint roundtable on this topic is scheduled for September 29, 2025, where regulators and industry stakeholders will discuss how to harmonize oversight across DeFi, prediction markets, perpetual contracts, and margin frameworks.
For compliance professionals, this shift toward continuous trading raises questions about operational resilience and surveillance coverage. Firms will need to prepare for the possibility that compliance monitoring—historically aligned with business hours—may soon require always-on oversight.
Tokenization and the SEC’s Role
Lawmakers in the U.S. Senate are simultaneously moving to resolve another area of uncertainty: the status of tokenized financial instruments. An amendment to the Responsible Financial Innovation Act of 2025 would explicitly classify tokenized stocks, bonds, and other securities as securities, keeping them firmly under SEC jurisdiction. This clarification ensures that tokenized products remain subject to existing broker-dealer, clearing, and disclosure frameworks, while removing ambiguity over whether they could fall under CFTC rules instead.
Nasdaq’s Bid to Tokenize U.S. Stocks
Adding momentum to this regulatory shift, Nasdaq filed rule change SR-NASDAQ-2025-072 with the SEC on September 8, 2025, seeking approval to trade tokenized U.S. stocks and ETFs alongside traditional shares on the same order book. Under the proposal, tokenized securities would carry full shareholder rights—including voting, dividends, and liquidation—and would be fungible with their traditional equivalents, sharing the same CUSIP and execution priority.
Nasdaq envisions these trades eventually settling on-chain, once the Depository Trust Company (DTC) completes the necessary blockchain-based infrastructure. If approved, the first token-settled trades could go live as early as Q3 2026. The exchange has emphasized that this initiative is not about bypassing existing rules but about upgrading U.S. market infrastructure, enhancing transparency, and improving efficiency while preserving investor protections.
This approach stands in contrast to certain offshore platforms offering synthetic tokenized equities without full shareholder rights. By embedding tokenized securities directly within regulated U.S. markets, Nasdaq is positioning itself as a leader in bringing blockchain technology to the core of the financial system.
What This Means for Compliance Professionals
For compliance teams, the regulatory convergence around crypto and traditional finance means more oversight, more transparency requirements, and more responsibility. As spot trading and tokenization move into regulated venues, firms will need to demonstrate that their compliance programs can detect market manipulation, insider trading, and conflicts of interest across both traditional and digital asset classes. The shift toward 24/7 markets also means expanding monitoring capabilities beyond the traditional trading day, ensuring real-time oversight of employee and client activity.
Updating policies, strengthening surveillance systems, and expanding employee training will be essential. Tokenized assets introduce new operational considerations, from custody to reporting, which must be fully aligned with SEC expectations. At the same time, firms have an opportunity to engage directly with regulators, particularly through upcoming forums like the SEC–CFTC roundtable on September 29, 2025, to help shape the future framework.
The Compliance Action Plan
To prepare for this next phase, compliance leaders should focus on four critical areas.
- First, surveillance and oversight: systems must be adapted to monitor 24/7 activity and identify red flags such as insider trading or manipulation across digital and traditional venues.
- Second, policy alignment: manuals, SOPs, and employee trading guidelines should be updated to explicitly cover crypto and tokenized assets, with training expanded to ensure staff understand their obligations.
- Third, exchange and token governance: firms should evaluate custody, reporting, and transparency controls for tokenized instruments and ensure they meet regulatory standards.
- Finally, engagement and advocacy: active participation in regulatory consultations and industry roundtables will help firms stay informed and contribute to shaping practical, balanced rules.
Looking Ahead
The combined momentum of regulatory guidance, legislative action, and market innovation is rapidly erasing the fog around spot crypto trading and tokenization. The SEC and CFTC’s joint statement, the proposal for 24/7 markets, and Nasdaq’s tokenization filing all point toward a future where digital assets are integrated into the regulated financial system.
For compliance officers, the message is clear: the time to prepare is now. Firms that proactively adapt their surveillance and governance frameworks will be best positioned to safeguard their organizations, meet regulatory expectations, and capitalize on the opportunities that come with the modernization of financial markets.
How StarCompliance Can Help
At StarCompliance (Star), we recognize that every regulatory development introduces both complexity and opportunity. Our SaaS-based compliance platform helps firms monitor and manage employee trading activity, identify conflicts of interest, and ensure regulatory obligations are met in the U.S. and in markets around the world. As crypto asset markets expand, Star is prepared to support firms in adapting policies, enhancing surveillance capabilities, and safeguarding integrity.
Our Crypto Dealing Compliance Software is purpose-built to give compliance teams the visibility and control they need as digital assets become part of both corporate and employee financial strategies.
Star’s platform offers:
- Pre-trade clearance to review and approve employee crypto transactions before execution
- Post-trade monitoring that automatically flags suspicious activity across more than 35+ exchanges, 30+ blockchains and 200+ tokens, eliminating the need for manual review
- Advanced reporting and analytics to detect patterns, flag risk indicators, and support audit readiness
With these capabilities, compliance officers can establish strong internal controls, uphold regulatory expectations, and protect their organizations’ reputations as digital assets become more mainstream.
Crypto Regulations Decoded
