PANews reported on December 23 that Andre Cronje, co-founder of Sonic Labs (formerly Fantom), shared on the X platform that despite complying with all regulations, he had been in difficult discussions with regulators (including the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission SEC) for nearly two years. He also pointed out that user preferences have changed, and many now prefer teams and products rather than immutable code. Cronje concluded that builders face a difficult choice: either commit to decentralization and immutability, risking accusations, regulatory barriers, and lack of returns; or accept corporatization, licensing, and controlled improvements to ensure continued progress.