Hester Peirce’s resignation has reduced the Securities and Exchange Commission’s listed membership to Chairman Paul Atkins and Commissioner Mark Uyeda, creating a smaller panel for future Commission-level decisions. At the same time, an amendment to the SEC’s quorum rule allows one eligible commissioner to act as the quorum for a specific matter when every other sitting commissioner is disqualified from considering it.
The change does not give the SEC new substantive authority, turn proposed rules into final regulations or remove the legal procedures that govern agency action. But it changes how the agency can continue its work when vacancies or recusals leave few commissioners available. The development is especially relevant to the SEC’s continuing work on crypto custody, digital-asset offerings and tokenized stocks, according to CryptoSlate.
A smaller commission and a new quorum exception
Peirce’s resignation letter was dated Sept. 21 and made her departure effective Oct. 2. The SEC’s roster, updated Oct. 3, lists Atkins and Uyeda as the agency’s two commissioners. The SEC’s historical service table also records Peirce’s term as ending on Oct. 2.
The quorum amendment was dated Sept. 30 and became effective on Oct. 2. It revised 17 CFR 200.41, the rule governing the number of commissioners who must be eligible to conduct Commission business.
An existing vacancy provision already allowed the number of commissioners in office to constitute a quorum when fewer than three commissioners were serving. That meant a two-member SEC could continue operating, and the provision could also cover a Commission with only one sitting member.
The separate rule covering disqualified commissioners previously accommodated two eligible commissioners after other members were disqualified. The amendment extends that provision to one eligible commissioner when every other member in office is disqualified from the particular matter.
As a result, if Atkins were disqualified from a specific matter, Uyeda could constitute the quorum for that matter. The same principle would apply if Uyeda were the disqualified commissioner. The rule applies to disqualification involving the matter itself; a commissioner’s disagreement with a proposal does not satisfy that condition.
The SEC said the amendment is intended to help the agency continue conducting business and provide flexibility and finality. It classified the change as related to internal management and organization rather than substantive regulation.
Crypto proposals remain proposals
The reduced roster does not alter the legal status of the SEC’s pending crypto initiatives. One major item is the Oct. 1 custody proposal, which addresses how regulated investment companies could custody crypto securities and similar investments, as well as how registered investment advisers could custody clients’ crypto funds and securities. It also includes related modernization and reporting provisions.
The SEC’s page continues to identify the custody release as a proposal and lists Dec. 7 as the public-comment deadline. The quorum amendment therefore does not itself authorize the custody arrangements described in the proposal.
The custody proposal also illustrates the timing of the membership change. The October voting record shows Atkins, Peirce and Uyeda approving the release of IA-7023 on Oct. 1, one day before Peirce’s resignation took effect and the quorum amendment became effective.
Another pending measure is Regulation Crypto Assets, issued Aug. 18 and published Aug. 21. It would establish offering exemptions for certain investment contracts involving crypto assets, while retaining disclosure requirements and continuing antifraud and antimanipulation obligations. The proposal also includes a conditional safe harbor related to whether an arrangement constitutes an investment contract.
The comment deadline for that offering proposal is Oct. 20. Both measures remain subject to the procedures applicable to rulemaking, including notice and comment where required.
Tokenized-stock relief is already conditional
The SEC’s treatment of tokenized stocks is at a different stage. Its Sept. 17 Innovation Exemption is an issued, temporary conditional exemptive order covering specified venues for trading tokenized National Market System stocks and certain liquidity providers.
The order’s fact sheet describes five years of conditional relief. The conditions include limits on stock symbols and trading volume, equivalent shareholder rights, publicly auditable smart contracts and operating disclosures. Where a stock is tokenized by an unaffiliated third party, the framework also requires notice to the issuer and an opportunity for the issuer to object.
That relief is therefore not merely a pending proposal, although it remains limited to qualifying participants and the conditions stated in the order. A later Commission decision involving the relief would still be governed by the applicable quorum rules. The new one-member exception does not expand the exemption or remove its safeguards.
What the rule does not change
For matters circulated among commissioners, the SEC’s seriatim procedure requires each member to report a vote or intended nonparticipation to the secretary before the matter becomes final. A commissioner may also request that a circulated item be withdrawn and placed on the agenda for joint deliberation.
Under 17 CFR 200.60, commissioners are expected to consider carefully whether interests or relationships affect their qualification to participate. The amended quorum provision addresses cases where all other members are disqualified, but it does not eliminate those qualification requirements.
The SEC also retains rules governing delegated action, staff statements and review of delegated decisions. General rulemaking is excluded from the statutory delegation authority described in the source material. In addition, the Administrative Procedure Act continues to impose notice-and-comment requirements for covered rulemaking, subject to specified exceptions.
The SEC’s conclusion that its organizational quorum amendment did not require notice and comment is not a blanket exemption for future crypto rules. Courts may still set aside agency action that is unlawful, exceeds statutory authority or fails to follow required procedures. A smaller Commission does not create additional substantive power or shield decisions from judicial review.
The SEC’s posted October tally includes the three-member vote approving the custody proposal, but no later one-member crypto decision is listed. The agency generally posts votes when matters are final, so that tally does not establish a complete record of every action.
Moneyiar market picture
Moneyiar data at 10:44 a.m. on Oct. 7, 2026, show Four (FORM) at $0.2702914463, down 3.07% over 24 hours and 6.39% over seven days. ONEchain (ONE) was $0.1372978226, down 5.94% in 24 hours and 0.63% over seven days.
RedStone (RED) stood at $0.1493858009, down 10.11% over 24 hours and 10.77% over seven days, based on data recorded at 10:43 a.m. Power Protocol (POWER) was $0.1497074625, down 2.37% over 24 hours but up 69.97% over seven days; that figure was recorded at 8:14 a.m. on Sept. 16, 2026.
The next stated regulatory milestones are the Oct. 20 deadline for the offering proposal, the Dec. 7 deadline for the custody proposal and any subsequent Commission decisions concerning those measures or the conditional tokenized-stock relief. How the reduced SEC operates will depend on the matter involved, which commissioners are eligible to participate and the decision ultimately taken.
