The Cryptocurrency Innovation Council, part of the Staking Benefits Alliance, has urged the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to exempt staking from classification as securities. The group’s letter to the SEC’s cryptocurrency task force emphasizes that SEC staff recently stated that ‘proof-of-work’ cryptocurrency mining does not fall under their jurisdiction in regard to securities transactions. They believe a similar logic should apply to staking, thus removing it from the securities category. The council contends that when users stake their cryptocurrencies, they are essentially locking them up for a period to contribute to the blockchain’s operations and security, receiving rewards as payment for this service. This, according to the group, constitutes valuable technical services rather than passive investment income.