CFTC Proposes Crypto Framework After CLARITY Act Stalls in Congress
The CFTC is moving on crypto regulation using existing authority after the CLARITY Act failed to advance. The SEC had already proposed its own framework.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is stepping into the crypto regulatory vacuum left by Congress, with Chair Michael Selig announcing the agency will deploy its existing statutory powers to craft a digital-asset framework — joining the Securities and Exchange Commission, which had already moved to propose its own crypto rules.
Selig's announcement comes directly in the wake of the CLARITY Act's failure to advance in Congress, a market structure bill that had been positioned as the legislative vehicle for establishing clear jurisdictional boundaries between the CFTC and SEC over digital assets. With that path blocked, both agencies are now acting unilaterally within their current legal mandates rather than waiting for lawmakers to deliver a unified solution.
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The parallel moves by the two top financial regulators signal a notable shift in Washington's approach to crypto oversight. Rather than a coordinated federal framework emerging from Capitol Hill, the industry now faces the prospect of two separate regulatory blueprints developed independently by competing agencies — a scenario that could deepen jurisdictional ambiguity rather than resolve it.
For crypto firms and investors, the dual-agency push raises immediate practical questions about compliance obligations and which regulator holds authority over specific asset classes. The CFTC has historically claimed oversight of crypto commodities like Bitcoin, while the SEC has asserted jurisdiction over tokens it deems securities — a distinction that remains legally contested and unresolved without Congressional action.
The outcome of these parallel proposals will likely shape the regulatory landscape for digital assets in the United States for years to come, particularly as global competitors move to establish clearer crypto rules. Continue reading at Cointelegraph.
