How Have Recent SEC Enforcement Actions Clarified the Application of the Howey Test to Tokens?

Recent SEC actions have emphasized that the substance of the offering, not the label ('utility token'), is what matters. The SEC has focused heavily on the 'expectation of profit' and 'efforts of others' prongs, scrutinizing marketing materials and the degree of control retained by the issuer.

They have consistently argued that most tokens sold to the public were investment contracts from the start, clarifying that the test applies to the initial sale, regardless of later decentralization.