US Commodities Agency Submits Crypto Rulemaking File for Review Amid Congressional Deadlock
The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission has submitted its rulemaking file regarding crypto transactions and markets for White House review.
The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) sent its rulemaking file titled “Regulation of Crypto Asset Transactions and Crypto Asset Markets” to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) within the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). OIRA serves as the unit that reviews regulations prepared by federal agencies before they are published.
The file is not yet a final regulation in effect; the CFTC has also not made a statement regarding the details of the application. This step shows that federal agencies are continuing their regulatory preparations while comprehensive crypto legislation fails to progress in Congress.
CFTC Advances Official Process Following Congressional Deadlock
The development comes after the bill known as the CLARITY Act, which was expected to bring comprehensive federal rules to the digital asset sector, failed to pass a procedural vote in the Senate on September 15. This development indicates that crypto regulations can also advance through the steps of federal agencies outside the legislative process in Congress.
CFTC Chairman Michael Selig previously stated that if the bill failed to advance, the agency would attempt to create a framework for crypto asset markets using its existing authorities. In his statement in August, Selig mentioned a market structure where both registered and unregistered crypto exchanges could operate under CFTC oversight. However, these remarks do not disclose the exact provisions of the file submitted to OIRA.
On the same day, the Securities and Exchange Commission published an “innovation exemption” aimed at creating space for tokenized stocks traded on the blockchain. The CFTC, for its part, announced a separate no-action position, stating that under certain conditions, it would not recommend enforcement actions against software developers for failing to register as brokers that refer customers.