The Jito Foundation, a non-profit organization known for its work on the Solana network's maximal extractable value (MEV) infrastructure, has announced it is returning to the United States, citing a more favorable regulatory environment for digital assets. This decision marks a significant shift after the foundation was compelled to operate overseas due to what it considered hostile regulatory conditions.
MEV, a key aspect of Jito's work, involves traders or validators potentially profiting by manipulating the order, inclusion, or exclusion of transactions within a blockchain block. By strategically rearranging transactions before confirmation, MEV participants can capitalize on opportunities like arbitrage and front-running to gain additional fees or transaction rewards.
Lucas Bruder, co-founder and CEO of Jito Labs, explained the difficulties the foundation faced, including challenges with banking services and vendor contracts, alongside legal risks from a perceived hostile regulatory environment. Bruder specifically pointed to the passage of the GENIUS stablecoin bill and ongoing efforts to create a crypto market structure bill as critical factors influencing the foundation’s return.
The move also reflects broader changes in the U.S. regulatory landscape, particularly within the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), following the 2024 presidential election and the appointment of Paul Atkins as SEC chair. The SEC has explicitly stated that liquid staking activities do not constitute securities transactions. Furthermore, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and Treasury have confirmed that investment trusts and exchange-traded products (ETPs) can stake digital assets. This regulatory guidance is expected to benefit Lido and Jito, both of which are leading liquid staking protocols in the Ethereum and Solana ecosystems.
Despite the presence of a pro-crypto administration in the White House and at the SEC, some crypto industry executives still report challenges related to debanking. However, the overall trend suggests a gradual improvement in regulatory clarity. Grayscale's recent report indicates that improved regulatory clarity supports the adoption of digital assets. The report anticipates bipartisan legislation on the structure of the cryptocurrency market will officially become U.S. law in 2026. This is expected to deepen the integration between public blockchains and traditional finance, facilitate the compliant trading of digital asset securities, and potentially allow startups and established companies to conduct on-chain issuance.
The evolving regulatory landscape is also expected to drive structural transformation in digital asset investment, spurred by rising demand for alternative value storage tools and significant improvements in regulatory clarity. This combination is predicted to introduce new capital sources, expand the adoption of digital assets among wealth management advisors and institutional investors, and promote a more comprehensive integration of public blockchains into mainstream financial infrastructure.
Furthermore, the ability of crypto ETPs to participate in staking is likely to make “staking as a default holding method” the standard. Digital currencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, with their transparency, programmability, and scarce supply, are expected to see stronger demand. More crypto assets are anticipated to be available to investors in the form of ETPs in 2026. As platforms mature in their due diligence and inclusion of crypto assets into asset allocation processes, slower but substantial institutional capital is expected to continue entering the market.
