Orca CLO says SEC innovation exemption gives DeFi chance to prove efficiency

Christopher Montanaro, chief legal officer at Orca, said at Korea Blockchain Week 2026 that the U.S. SEC’s new innovation exemption gives the DeFi industry a chance to test whether blockchain-based financial infrastructure is actually more efficient than traditional financial systems. The innovation exemption introduced by the SEC on Sept. 17 refers to a temporary conditional exemption that allows limited trading of tokenized U.S. stocks in on-chain environments.