SEC proposes gutting Rule 611 and 610(e). Benchmark says it's 2026's most consequential US crypto rule. Tokenized equity platforms gain regulatory room.
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The SEC proposed scrapping two core equity trading rules on June 11, a move that Benchmark says makes it the most important US crypto regulation of 2026. Not a stablecoin bill or a Bitcoin ETF tweak. Rule 611 and Rule 610(e) under Regulation NMS are the targets.
Rule 611, the trade-through rule, forces brokers to send orders to the exchange with the best displayed price. If the NYSE has a better bid than Nasdaq, your broker must route there. Rule 610(e) prevents locked or crossed quotes where the bid equals or exceeds the ask on another venue.
The crypto angle is indirect but real. Platforms building tokenized versions of US stocks have long faced a regulatory wall: the trade-through rule required them to plug into the National Market System’s routing infrastructure if they wanted to trade equities. Remove that requirement, and blockchain-based venues gain a clearer path to compete. Benchmark’s analysts called the proposal the year’s “most consequential” US crypto rule for exactly that reason.
SIFMA, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, has publicly supported the plan. The group says the old rules raise costs and lock out innovation.
For traditional equity investors, there is a trade-off. Without Rule 611, best-execution guarantees shift from automatic routing to platform-level policies. Retail customers who benefited from the hidden safety net of best-price routing may need to trust their broker’s judgment more directly. Centralized exchanges like the NYSE and Nasdaq also lose a regulatory moat that has funneled order flow their way for two decades.
The proposal runs 267 pages and includes conforming amendments to adjust related rules for the removal of 611 and 610(e). A separate set of scheduled market structure reforms would be delayed. No effective date has been set.
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