The US SEC issued the latest guidance: Liquidity pledge is not regulated by securities laws

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) stated in its latest guidance that certain liquidity staking activities do not involve securities, and those engaging in such activities do not need to register with the agency under securities laws. Liquidity pledgers that may not be subject to securities laws include Lido, Marinade Finance, JitoSOL, and Stakewise. The SEC noted that the issuance and sale of pledge receipt tokens in certain manners and circumstances do not constitute the issuance and sale of securities, unless the deposited crypto assets are part of an investment contract. This applies particularly to staking cryptocurrencies through software protocols or service providers, and then obtaining "liquidity pledge receipt tokens" to prove the pledger's ownership of the pledged crypto assets and any income generated.