Catenaa, Tuesday, September 01, 2026- The US Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed a major update to rules governing securities transfer agents, bringing regulations written largely in the 1970s into an era of electronic recordkeeping, blockchain and automated financial systems.
The proposal would revise requirements applying to registered transfer agents, which maintain official records of securities ownership and help process share transfers, dividends, mergers and other corporate actions.
SEC Chair Paul Atkins said the changes are intended to reflect how transfer agents operate today, including their increasing use of electronic communications and blockchain technology.
The proposal could have direct implications for firms seeking to use distributed ledgers to maintain securities ownership records.
Transfer agents sit between issuers, investors and market infrastructure because they help establish who legally owns shares and record changes in ownership.
The SEC said firms using blockchain-based systems would need to manage risks involving data integrity, security and the operational design of distributed ledgers.
The agency also addressed smart contracts, which can automate functions such as transfers, restrictions and settlement under predefined conditions.
Using automated code would not remove a transfer agent’s regulatory obligations.
The SEC said firms would still need controls capable of maintaining accurate records and protecting the integrity of securities transactions.
The proposal also addresses AI and other automated technologies.
Transfer agents using AI would need appropriate oversight and should accurately describe the capabilities of automated systems rather than relying on technology without sufficient human supervision.
The changes represent an effort to adapt existing securities infrastructure rules rather than create a separate legal framework for every new technology.
That approach could allow blockchain-based systems to operate within established requirements for ownership records, investor protection and settlement.
The proposal would also modernize terminology across the transfer-agent rules and update provisions governing electronic systems.
Some existing regulations were developed when paper certificates, physical records and manual processing played a much larger role in securities markets.
Electronic trading and settlement have since become standard.
The SEC’s review reflects the possibility that distributed ledgers may become another part of regulated market infrastructure.
A blockchain entry alone does not resolve legal questions over ownership, correction of errors or responsibility when records conflict.
Transfer agents remain responsible for maintaining accurate ownership records and handling corporate actions, regardless of the underlying technology.
The proposed rules could therefore shape which blockchain models are practical for regulated securities markets.
Platforms that incorporate identity controls, reconciliation procedures and administrative safeguards may be better positioned to meet those requirements.
The proposal follows a series of moves by digital asset companies into regulated transfer-agent functions.
Injective recently became an SEC-registered transfer agent through Injective Institutional Services.
Securitize and tZERO also operate as registered transfer agents and have developed infrastructure around digital securities.
Their presence illustrates the growing overlap between crypto-native technology and conventional securities regulation.
The SEC proposal does not automatically authorize every blockchain model or remove existing securities-law requirements.
A security remains subject to applicable securities laws regardless of whether its ownership records are kept in a conventional database or on a distributed ledger.
The proposal instead seeks to make the transfer-agent framework compatible with modern infrastructure.
That distinction matters for firms building digital securities systems.
Clearer rules around recordkeeping, controls and responsibility could reduce uncertainty for institutions considering blockchain-based issuance.
The proposal also reflects a broader shift in the SEC’s approach to digital assets.
Rather than focusing only on whether individual tokens qualify as securities, the commission is increasingly addressing the infrastructure required if blockchain becomes part of mainstream capital markets.
Custody, trading, settlement, recordkeeping and transfer-agent services are all likely to become more important as digital securities move closer to conventional finance.
The SEC said the transfer-agent rules have not undergone a comparable modernization since they were developed nearly five decades ago.
That creates a gap between regulations written for an earlier market structure and firms now operating through cloud systems, APIs, distributed ledgers and automated processes.
The proposal would attempt to narrow that gap without removing the underlying responsibilities imposed on transfer agents.
Commissioner Hester Peirce supported the proposal and said she was pleased it had been issued before her departure from the commission.
The SEC has opened a 60-day public comment period.
Industry responses are likely to focus on how the commission defines blockchain-related responsibilities, whether requirements remain technology-neutral and how compliance obligations apply when multiple parties participate in distributed-ledger systems.
Those details could determine how easily blockchain infrastructure is incorporated into regulated US securities markets.
Transfer agents maintain ownership records for securities and help process transfers, dividends, mergers and other corporate actions. The SEC’s existing framework was developed largely in the late 1970s, before electronic markets became dominant and decades before blockchain, smart contracts and AI entered financial infrastructure. Several companies, including Securitize, tZERO and Injective Institutional Services, are registered transfer agents operating around digital securities. The SEC’s latest proposal seeks to update existing rules for that technological shift while preserving responsibilities involving accurate recordkeeping, operational controls and investor protection. The commission has given the public 60 days to comment before deciding whether to adopt final rules.
