tl;dr
A coalition led by the Solana Policy Institute, decentralized exchange Orca, and investment adviser Superstate has filed a request with the U.S. SEC to launch "Project Open," a pilot program for issuing and trading securities on public blockchains like Solana. The proposal seeks exemptive relief und...
A coalition led by the Solana Policy Institute, decentralized exchange Orca, and investment adviser Superstate has filed a request with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to launch "Project Open," a pilot program designed to issue and trade securities on public blockchains such as Solana.
The filing, submitted on April 30, proposes exemptive relief under existing regulatory frameworks to allow U.S. entities to issue securities as programmable tokens with built-in compliance features. These securities would be traded on Orca's platform, serving as a venue for secondary market transactions.
Project Open aims to demonstrate that public blockchains can facilitate transparent, compliant, and efficient securities markets, potentially providing alternatives to traditional clearing and settlement systems like the DTCC. The pilot includes robust KYC (know-your-customer) and AML (anti-money laundering) controls and is structured as a limited-scope program with capped volumes and selected asset types.
Superstate would issue the securities under an SEC-registered investment adviser structure, while the Solana Policy Institute would coordinate technical and regulatory engagement. The initiative seeks regulatory approval to operate within existing investor protection rules and is guided by SEC Rules 5b-3 and 15c3-3.
According to Solana Policy Institute CEO Miller Whitehouse-Levine, “Project Open is an embodiment of American progress in financial innovation,” with goals to make capital markets more efficient, accessible, and transparent by leveraging blockchain technology.
The filing stresses the advantages of public blockchains, including verifiable audit trails, open market data access, and lower barriers to entry for issuers and intermediaries. It also includes detailed technical documentation covering cryptographic settlement models, token standards, and compliance-enforcing access controls to ensure regulatory supervision.
The SEC has not yet issued a formal response or timeline for approval. If successful, Project Open would be one of the first SEC-sanctioned pilots allowing securities trading directly on a public blockchain with registered asset managers and decentralized exchange counterparties.