CoinDesk
Taylor Lindman, chief counsel of the SEC's Crypto Task Force, said the agency's pending crypto custody proposal is in the final stretch of White House review and will formally publish once the Office of Management and Budget signs off. The rule covers both broker-dealers and investment advisers, and is designed to let regulated intermediaries hold non-security tokens without needing special registration, with state-chartered trusts already cleared in September 2025 as permissible parking for adviser client assets. Lindman, speaking Tuesday at CoinDesk's Policy & Regulation event in Washington, framed the broader push as "boring" foundation-laying, but the operational read for US institutions is anything but.
Why it matters
The pending rule closes the largest open question for any regulated US firm weighing crypto exposure: how to actually hold the assets. Without a finalized custody rule, broker-dealers and advisers face an existential gap between wanting to offer crypto services and being structurally able to do so inside the existing securities framework. Lindman explicitly described the goal as assimilating existing intermediaries into a world where they "feel comfortable utilizing blockchain, even holding crypto assets, transacting crypto assets." That language matters; under the prior Gensler regime, crypto-native custodians were explicitly excluded and a 2023 custody rule never reached final form before being scrapped.
Market impact
The immediate beneficiaries are large US broker-dealers, RIAs, and the qualified custodian banks sitting in the back office. September's move to allow state-chartered trusts was a partial bridge; a finalized custody rule broadens the universe of entities that can hold client assets and clarifies how non-security tokens flow through the existing regulated book. Combined with the proposed rule on crypto offerings and a new tokenization exemption, the SEC is now publishing the plumbing that institutional crypto desks have been asking for since 2022. Watch for the formal proposal to drop shortly after OMB clearance, with a public comment window that will test how broadly industry wants the rule to land.
Frequently asked questions
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When will the SEC's crypto custody proposal be formally published?
Once the Office of Management and Budget at the White House completes its review of the proposal, the agency can publish it for industry and public comment. SEC Crypto Task Force chief counsel Taylor Lindman said the OMB review is in its final stretch.
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What does the pending SEC custody rule cover?
The rule governs both investment advisers and broker-dealers, and is designed to let regulated intermediaries hold non-security crypto tokens without needing special registration. State-chartered trusts were cleared in September 2025 as permissible custodians for adviser client assets.
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Why does the SEC custody rule matter for institutional crypto adoption?
Without a finalized custody rule, US broker-dealers and RIAs face a structural gap between wanting to offer crypto services and being able to do so inside the existing securities framework. The proposal closes the largest open question for regulated firms weighing crypto exposure.
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How does this rule differ from the SEC's 2023 custody effort?
The 2023 custody rule was pursued under then-Chair Gary Gensler and explicitly excluded crypto firms from qualifying as custodians; it never reached final form and was scrapped when crypto-friendly leadership took over. The current proposal is designed to assimilate regulated intermediaries into crypto rather than…
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What other pieces of the SEC's crypto agenda are moving alongside custody?
The agency has a proposed rule to allow crypto offerings and a new exemption clearing the way for tokenized securities. Together with the custody proposal, Lindman described the package as "boring" foundation-laying that puts non-security tokens inside a framework the industry can build on.
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