Michael Saylor from Strategy has joined the call for the US to establish a formal crypto taxonomy that clearly defines when a security can be tokenized and what qualifies as a digital security or commodity.
“It would be beneficial to the market if they finalize the digital assets taxonomy,” Saylor said during Strategy’s second-quarter earnings call on Thursday.
“Under what circumstances can you tokenize a security? What’s a digital security? If they can clarify a digital commodity, what’s an asset without an issuer versus a digital token?”
The crypto industry has urged the Trump administration to clarify the legal definitions surrounding cryptocurrency following prolonged legal disputes with the Securities and Exchange Commission over whether certain crypto assets qualify as securities.
Saylor added that without a clear taxonomy, significant confusion would persist regarding who is authorized to issue which assets and under what conditions. To address these issues, the current SEC has established a Crypto Task Force aimed at resolving some of these uncertainties.
White House and SEC step up efforts
Saylor’s remarks come as the White House Working Group on Digital Asset Markets urged federal regulators on Wednesday to accelerate efforts to clarify crypto regulations related to custody, trading, registration, and record-keeping.
In a speech on Thursday, Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Paul Atkins noted that much of the innovation in tokenization is happening overseas due to regulatory hurdles in the US.
However, he also shared that companies “are lined up at our doors with requests to tokenize” and that he has instructed SEC staff to “provide relief where appropriate” to help keep the US competitive as the digital asset industry develops.
Legislation aimed at clarifying crypto definitions is currently underway
Congress is set to review the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025 in September—a bill that Saylor believes would “create a very rich framework” for the crypto industry and everyday businesses seeking to issue, trade, or tokenize assets on-chain.
“In an ideal world, 40 million businesses would be able to issue a token in four hours for just $40,” Saylor said.
Robinhood is making a major play on tokenization
Meanwhile, Robinhood is placing a big bet on crypto tokenization, with a focus on opening up access to private markets for everyday US investors, CEO Vladimir Tenev said during the company’s second-quarter earnings call on Wednesday.
“Private markets and related real-world assets represent opportunities that haven’t existed until now,” he said, adding, “we’re working with regulators to make that possible.”
Robinhood has already issued private equity tokens in Europe resembling shares of companies like OpenAI and SpaceX.
However, Robinhood’s tokenization efforts recently faced a legal inquiry in Lithuania, and OpenAI has clarified that Robinhood’s OpenAI token is not connected to the company’s actual equity.
