TLDRThe SEC has proposed letting crypto startups raise up to $5 million and larger projects up to $75 million without full registration.Investor demand for new tokens has dropped since the 2018 ICO boom as money has shifted toward Bitcoin and other established assets.Venture investors say clearer rules could help legit projects raise money in the US, but fundraising is no longer the industry’s biggest concern.The proposal includes a safe harbor that lets tokens exit investment contract status once issuers finish their promised work.The rules are open for public comment for 60 days and move separately from the CLARITY Act, which remains stuck in the Senate.The US Securities and Exchange Commission wants to open a new path for crypto projects to raise money from the public. The plan would let smaller projects raise up to $5 million and larger ones raise as much as $75 million each year, without going through full securities registration.The proposal is called Regulation Crypto Assets. It was unveiled on August 18 and includes two separate exemptions for crypto fundraising.The first exemption is for early stage startups. It would let them raise up to $5 million over four years.The second exemption is bigger. It would let larger projects raise up to $75 million during any 12 month period.Both paths require issuers to give investors disclosures about the project. Projects using the larger exemption also need to file financial statements and meet ongoing reporting rules.Why This Matters NowPublic token sales were once one of crypto’s main ways to raise cash. During the 2017 and 2018 ICO boom, projects could raise money with little more than a white paper and a new token.That boom ended after failed projects, falling prices, scams and lawsuits pushed much of the activity overseas. ICOs raised about $3 billion in January 2018 alone at their peak, according to Bloomberg.Since then, investor demand has shifted. Money has moved toward Bitcoin and a small group of established crypto assets. Traders have also gained access to newer products like perpetual futures and prediction markets.Some crypto venture firms have shifted their focus too. Instead of funding new tokens, several have put money into artificial intelligence and robotics companies.GSR research analyst Carlos Guzman told Bloomberg that the market has changed a lot since 2018. He said a white paper and a dream are no longer enough to attract investors.What Investors Are SayingNot everyone sees the timing as ideal. Dragonfly general partner Tom Schmidt said the rules would have helped more a few years ago.He said the industry’s most pressing issues now are tied to market structure questions that were supposed to be answered by the CLARITY Act.Other investors are more positive. Strobe Ventures partner Winnie Lau called the proposal a step in the right direction for teams trying to build token networks in the US.Pantera Capital’s Cosmo Jiang pointed out a strange gap in the old rules. He said memecoins were legal to launch, while tokens tied to real projects often were not.The proposal also includes a safe harbor. It would let a token stop being treated as an investment contract once the issuer finishes the work it promised to investors.Crypto market conditions add another layer to the story. Bitcoin was down nearly 10% for 2026 even after a recent recovery, while gold had gained more than 7%.Exchange traded funds tracking gold and Bitcoin still pulled in a combined record $7 billion over five trading days this week, based on Bloomberg data.The SEC’s proposal is open for public comment for 60 days after it appears in the Federal Register. It moves separately from the CLARITY Act, which remains stuck in the Senate after lawmakers raised concerns tied to ethics provisions this month.The post SEC Proposes New Rules to Allow Public Crypto Token Sales appeared first on Blockonomi.