SEC Innovation Exemption Allows Tokenized U.S. Stock Trading, Orca Says

At Korea Blockchain Week, Orca Chief Legal Officer Christopher Montagano stated that the SEC's innovation exemption issued on September 17 provides a framework to test the efficiency of DeFi infrastructure compared to traditional systems. The five-year conditional relief, effective until September 17, 2031, allows tokenized securities venues and specific liquidity providers to facilitate licensed trading of tokenized U.S. stocks without registering as exchanges or broker-dealers. Montagano noted the exemption is tailored for AMMs but is not a blanket ruling for DeFi, as participants must still comply with sanctions and obtain issuer consent.