The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has lifted two warnings for cryptocurrency-related employees, citing “market development and maturity” and the need for fair treatment.
The agency plans to treat cryptocurrency derivatives in the same way as other derivative instruments.
Cheyenne Ligon | Edited by Nikhilesh De Updated Mar 31, 2025 21:12 UTC Published Mar 31, 2025 17:39 UTC
Key points:
- On Friday, the CFTC rescinded two guidelines related to cryptocurrencies, noting the increased maturity of the market and the need to treat cryptocurrency-related derivatives products like other derivatives.
- CFTC Streamlines Its Cryptocurrency Regulation Strategy
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on Friday repealed two staff guidelines related to cryptocurrencies, further streamlining its approach to regulating the space.
The first document to be rescinded was Staff Guidance 18-14, which addresses the listing of virtual currency derivatives. Published in May 2018, the guidance set rules for cryptocurrency derivatives, including requiring reporting companies to maintain “active cooperation with the CFTC’s oversight team” and setting a threshold of five bitcoins (or the equivalent for other cryptocurrencies) for large traders, among other recommendations. On Friday, the CFTC issued a letter arguing that “additional staff expertise” and “increased market growth” made the guidance unnecessary.
A second notice, Staff Advisory No. 23-07, addressing the risk analysis associated with expanding DCO clearing for digital assets, was issued in May 2023, “highlighting the need to comply” with CFTC rules due to “increased cyber and other operational risks associated with digital assets.” That guidance was rescinded for a different reason — to ensure fair and equitable treatment of cryptocurrency-related derivatives and their issuers, as the CFTC had proposed. In a separate letter on Friday, the CFTC said it was rescinding Staff Advisory No. 23-07 “to confirm that its regulatory treatment of digital asset derivatives will not differ from that of other products.”
The CFTC’s sister agency, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), has overhauled its approach to regulating cryptocurrencies since President Donald Trump took office in January. Under the new leadership of Acting Chairman Mark Uyeda, the SEC has created a cryptocurrency task force to spearhead the transformation, engaging with the industry and moving away from a slew of lawsuits and investigations launched under former Chairman Gary Gensler.
While the SEC’s rapid transformation may seem more visible, the CFTC is currently undergoing its own changes, streamlining its regulatory strategy as part of Acting Chair Caroline Pham’s “back-to-basics” initiative. In addition to repealing two crypto-related guidelines, the agency also repealed other non-cryptocurrency-related staff guidance and overhauled its compliance division, reducing its many specialized enforcement teams to two, promising that the streamlined unit will be more efficient and “end regulation through compliance.”
Liz Davis, a partner at Davis Wright Tremaine LLP in Washington, D.C.
Источник
