In brief
- Acting chair Caroline Pham said Thursday the sprint expands to custody, leveraged retail trading, and consumer protections, with feedback due October 20.
- The initiative is part of a four-phase process that began August 1, running alongside the SEC's Project Crypto.
- Observers told Decrypt the U.S. is shifting from enforcement to enablement, positioning itself to set global standards in digital asset markets.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is proceeding with the third phase of its "crypto sprint," a series of accelerated rulemaking efforts designed to implement recommendations from the President's Working Group on Digital Asset Markets.
"The Administration has made it clear that enabling immediate trading of digital assets at the Federal level is a top priority," acting CFTC chair Caroline Pham wrote in a statement on Thursday.
The CFTC's latest sprint expands beyond spot crypto trading to address all remaining recommendations from the working group's report on strengthening American leadership in technologies such as crypto and digital assets.
The CFTC appears to be "trying to lay a regulatory bedrock by seeking to establish a unified, federal-level spot market for crypto assets," Andrew Rossow, a public affairs attorney and CEO of AR Media Consulting, told Decrypt.
"It begins to address this state-by-state fragmentation and long-time occupancy of this grey zone," Rossow said, adding that he thinks the moves are made as part of a "federal legitimacy strategy" to create "foundational reform."
Still, retail investors would "most likely benefit from heightened protections," once the "federal handcuffs" are lifted to restore trust in a space "long tarnished by poor oversight,” he added.
What's it all about
The report seeks to provide a unified federal framework for digital asset markets, addressing gaps in market structure, custody, stablecoin regulation, and anti-money laundering standards.
Remaining sprints are expected to tackle unresolved issues around DeFi oversight, banking access, tax clarity, and inter-agency coordination.
Thursday’s announced sprint is the third in a four-part series. The first, on August 1, laid the framework. The second, on August 4, launched the spot trading initiative.
The latest expands to broader rulemaking, while a forthcoming fourth sprint is expected to translate stakeholder feedback into formal rules and supervisory guidance.
"The U.S. is asserting control over digital dollars and setting the standards others may follow," Ray Youssef, CEO of crypto messaging and P2P trading app NoOnes, told Decrypt. "Countries that once hesitated may be pushed to adopt similar frameworks or risk falling behind in the race to modernize finance."
The CFTC has set an October 20 deadline for comments on the broader set of recommendations. The federal agency did not immediately respond to Decrypt's request for comments.