SEC, CFTC Chiefs Promise ‘New Day’ for Crypto with Joint Regulatory Overhaul

Paul Atkins, the chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and Caroline Pham, the acting chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), are advocating for increased collaboration between their respective agencies. They are also proposing pro-crypto regulatory modifications as part of a fresh approach to encourage the adoption of digital assets in various markets.

The duo issued a joint statement on Sept. 5 declaring their commitment to fostering “harmonization between US market regulators.” In the official bulletin, Atkins and Pham claim that regulators must be flexible and agile as digital asset markets and innovative financial products continue to emerge and proliferate.

According to the document, they say the SEC and CFTC “must coordinate to ensure there is not a regulatory ‘no man’s land’ due to inaction by one or both agencies,” and they point out that not doing this has hurt economic growth, making it hard for digital asset markets to develop fully.

The two agencies now pledge to work “in lockstep” under the leadership of Atkins and Pham. “It is a new day at the SEC and the CFTC,” reads one portion of the statement, wherein the pair “reaffirm the need to ensure regulation does not stand in the way of progress.”

Agencies Outline Specific Steps for Crypto-Friendly Reforms

As part of their next steps, the agencies will focus on a few specific actions, including extending US trading hours to allow for 24/7 markets, providing clearer rules for predictions and derivatives markets, making sure that market participants aren’t facing conflicting collateral requirements from both agencies, and looking into “innovative exemptions” for decentralized finance (DeFi) and peer-to-peer transactions.

The joint statement comes just a few months after Pham pledged that the CFTC would take a proactive stance on regulating digital assets. In a speech given on June 12 during the Coinbase Annual Summit, Pham told audience members that “there is no easy street for anybody” and that regulators would crack down on lawbreakers in the crypto space. However, Pham also added that the agency was committed to ending the “regulation by enforcement” approach previously employed by US regulators in order to foster a positive market environment.

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