Results
SEC - U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
12/17/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 12/17/2025 17:51
No Longer Special: Statement on the Division of Trading and Market’s Statement Related to the Custody of Crypto Asset Securities by Broker-Dealers
Today, the staff of the Division of Trading and Markets issued a statement providing its views on the application of Rule 15c3-3 to broker-dealers that custody crypto asset securities, including tokenized equity or debt securities, on behalf of customers (the "Statement"). The Statement provides that the Division will not object to a broker-dealer deeming itself to have "physical possession"[1] of a crypto asset security in the circumstances described in the Statement. The circumstances include that the broker-dealer maintains policies, procedures and controls that are reasonably designed and consistent with industry best practices to protect private keys.
This statement provides clarity about the Division's views to broker-dealers seeking to provide custody services to their customers. I would encourage the Division to swiftly develop recommendations for Commission consideration regarding amendments to Rule 15c3-3 that address the custody of crypto assets.
I would like to express my thanks to Director Jamie Selway and his staff in the Division of Trading and Markets for their hard work on this Statement.
[1] Rule 15c3-3 requires broker-dealers to maintain "physical possession or control" of securities carried for customers. The Statement indicates that it does not address the "control" prong of Rule 15c3-3, which was separately addressed by the Division in an FAQ published earlier this year. See Division of Trading and Markets: Frequently Asked Questions Relating to Crypto Asset Activities and Distributed Ledger Technology (Updated December 17, 2025), https://www.sec.gov/rules-regulations/staff-guidance/trading-markets-frequently-asked-questions/frequently-asked-questions-relating-crypto-asset-activities-distributed-ledger-technology at Question 2 (clarifying that, in the staff's view, a broker-dealer may establish "control" of a crypto asset security by holding it through a control location specified in paragraph (c) of Rule 15c3-3).
SEC - U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission published this content on December 17, 2025, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on December 17, 2025 at 23:51 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]