CFTC Sends Crypto Rules to the White House After Clarity Act Fails
After the Clarity Act fell through, the CFTC is still looking for room to set its own crypto rules through the White House, while the SEC opens a path for tokenized stocks.
Key Takeaways
- The CFTC sent a new crypto rule proposal to the White House after the Senate did not pass the Clarity Act.
- The contents of the CFTC proposal are not yet known and still have to go through OMB, the CFTC, and a public consultation.
- The SEC and CFTC also opened new routes at the same time for tokenized stocks and software that gives access to regulated derivatives markets.
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is moving ahead with its own crypto rules now that the Senate did not pass the Clarity Act earlier this week. The regulator sent a new proposal on Thursday to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review, while the SEC opened a separate path for tokenized stock trading on the same day.
CFTC Looks for Its Own Path
The contents of the CFTC proposal have not been made public yet. That means it is still unclear which crypto assets the rules would apply to, which exchanges would need to qualify, what restrictions would apply, and how far the regulator believes its own authority goes.
After the OMB review, the draft goes back to the CFTC for a vote and a public consultation. After that, a second vote is still needed before the rules can actually take effect.
CFTC Chair Mike Selig said after Wednesday's vote that the regulator is ready to deliver its rules for the new financial frontier. The move fits into a broader effort by the CFTC and the SEC to give the crypto sector more clarity within their existing mandates now that the Clarity Act has stalled in Congress.
SEC Opens Tokenized Path
On Thursday, the SEC issued a so-called innovation exemption. That lets platforms that meet the conditions offer onchain trading in certain tokenized stocks for five years without registering as a securities exchange. The measure is meant to modernize capital markets by linking crypto-style trading with traditional stocks.
The CFTC also issued a no-action letter on Friday. It gives certain software providers a way to connect users to regulated derivatives markets without registering as introducing brokers. This involves passive software that lets users view markets and submit orders directly to registered firms, including through crypto wallets.
That means the SEC took a step that lines up with its earlier plan to give tokenized securities venues five years to operate under certain conditions. Together with the CFTC move, it shows that both regulators are now trying to guide the market through their existing powers.
Why This Matters
For European crypto readers, this shows how quickly U.S. rules around crypto, tokenized assets, and derivatives are developing at the same time. The combination of a CFTC process and a new SEC route could matter for firms that are active in the U.S. or want to launch services there. For the broader crypto market, the key point is that regulators are now trying to create room within their existing rules while Congress still has not passed a new law.
