OpenSea Announces Major Platform Overhaul Amid Regulatory Scrutiny From SEC

Leading non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace OpenSea says it is about to launch a major overhaul of its platform.

Leading non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace OpenSea says it’s preparing to launch a complete overhaul of its platform.

In a post on social media platform X, OpenSea co-founder and CEO Devin Finzer says he’s been working to rebuild the world’s largest NFT marketplace.

“We’ve been quietly cooking at @opensea.

To really innovate, sometimes you have to take a step back and reimagine everything

So we built a new OpenSea from the ground up.”

OpenSea is also opening the waitlist for its revamped platform, which is set for launch in December this year.

The move comes amid regulatory scrutiny from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

In August, Finzer revealed that OpenSea received a Wells notice from the SEC warning that the platform is involved in potential securities violations.

According to Finzer, the SEC considers the NFTs on OpenSea as securities. He says the platform will defend itself against the regulator and allocate $5 million to cover the legal fees of NFT artists who may also receive a similar Wells notice.

“By targeting NFTs, the SEC would stifle innovation on an even broader scale: hundreds of thousands of online artists and creatives are at risk, and many do not have the resources to defend themselves.”