A16z Proposes Safe Harbor for Crypto Airdrops
Miles Jennings, the policy head at a16z crypto, has called for a regulatory safe harbor for crypto airdrops. In a recent report, he argued that airdrops should be “safe, legal, and frequent.” This move aims to ease the strict regulations imposed by the U.S. SEC under Gary Gensler.
The current regulatory climate has led to Americans being excluded from airdrops. Jennings believes this exclusion is detrimental, as it prevents people from owning a piece of the internet. He criticizes the SEC’s stance, which considers moast airdrops as unregistered securities offerings. This exclusion has created unfair situations,depriving Americans of participation.
Jennings advocates for a new approach. He wants to make airdrops more accessible. He believes airdrops are vital for decentralization and should not be treated as securities offerings.His proposal outlines five conditions for airdrops to be exempt from U.S. securities laws. This exclusion could help projects achieve true decentralization.
Under Jennings’ proposal, airdropped tokens must be network tokens from an operational blockchain. The distribution should be broad and fair, not favoring private investors. Tokens should be free or based on past network usage. Insiders’ tokens should be locked for a year.
By implementing these conditions, Jennings hopes to make airdrops safer and more inclusive. This could lead to greater decentralization and innovation in the crypto space.
