미국 디지털자산 규제 환경의 변화 및 우리나라에 대한 시사점과 대응 전략 - SEC의 정책 기조 전환과 CLARITY Act 및 우리나라의 디지털자산기본법을 중심으로 -

Under Chair Gary Scott Gensler, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) applied traditional securities regulation to digital-asset markets through a regulation by enforcement approach. In line with President Donald John Trump’s crypto-friendly stance, the SEC, under Acting Chair Mark Toshiro Uyeda and Chair Paul S. Atkins, has pivoted to a clear regulatory framework. The SEC is (ⅰ) reviewing tailored disclosure standards and regulatory exemptions for issuance, (ⅱ) adopting SAB 122, which applies the contingent-liability accounting standard (ASC 450) to risks associated with digital assets held in custody by financial institutions, and (ⅲ) discussing the introduction of integrated “super-app” platforms that could simultaneously offer trading in securities, non-securities, and other financial services. Congress is likewise considering three digital-asset bills—the GENIUS Act (S. 1582) and the STABLE Act (H.R. 2392), which focus on the sustainability and soundness of stablecoins, and the CLARITY Act (H.R. 3633), a framework statute governing digital assets more broadly. The GENIUS Act was enacted in July 2025. The CLARITY Act passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in July 2025 (ⅰ) classifies digital assets into digital commodities, investment contract assets, and permitted payment stablecoins; (ⅱ) provides that, once an investment contract asset achieves sufficient decentralization, it may be reclassified as a digital commodity through mature blockchain system certification, thereby easing securities regulation; (ⅲ) introduces a safe harbor for non-custodial DeFi technology contributors to protect innovation; (ⅳ) allows digital commodity exchanges (DCEs) to self-certify listings subject to publicly articulated standards, while SEC/CFTC retain authority to intervene in delistings; and (ⅴ) mandates joint rulemaking and the introduction of mixed trading platforms supervised by both the SEC and the CFTC to strengthen inter-agency coordination. Collectively, these measures enhance predictability and regulatory coherence, supporting sustainable and sound market development. Korea has progressed from the Act on Reporting and Use of Specified Financial Transaction Information (addressing AML/CFT obligations of virtual asset service providers) to the Virtual Asset User Protection Act (focusing on user-asset safeguards and unfair virtual assets trading rules). It is now debating a general statute—the Framework Act on Digital Assets. Drawing on the SEC’s policy pivot and the CLARITY Act, Korea should: (ⅰ) adopt a regulatory life-cycle approach that differentiates obligations and eases regulation upon sufficient decentralization through reclassification; (ⅱ) separate the legal characterization of the issuance transaction (investment contract) from that of the circulating token, thereby clarifying responsibility in the primary and secondary markets; (ⅲ) provide a safe harbor for non-custodial DeFi technology contributors; and (ⅳ) establish a coordinated supervisory governance model centered on a Digital Assets Committee, together with a linked secondary-market regulatory framework connecting the financial authorities and digital-asset exchanges for oversight of the secondary market.