The SEC just proposed letting crypto projects raise $75 million without full registration and nobody cares

Eight years after the ICO boom, the regulator is offering a path that the market already abandoned. The capital it is trying to regulate now flows through channels the proposal does not touch. Summary The SEC proposed a framework allowing crypto projects to raise up to $75 million annually through public token sales without full securities registration, using an expanded version of existing Regulation A+ exemptions. The proposal arrives roughly eight years after the 2017 to 2018 ICO wave that prompted it, during which projects raised over $20 billion through unregistered token sales before the SEC began systematic enforcement. In 2026, capital formation in crypto has shifted almost entirely to mechanisms the proposal does not cover: meme coin launchpads, airdrops, points programs, liquid token listings, and venture rounds with simple agreements for future tokens. Pump.fun posted its second highest revenue day in history during the same week the SEC published the proposal, generating more capital formation in 24 hours than most ICOs raised in their entire campaigns. The framework requires audited financials, ongoing reporting, and a two year pathway to full registration, requirement...