WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Mike Selig said his agency will soon provide guidance on how to handle the business as cryptocurrency perpetual futures have grown largely overseas due to U.S. reluctance to pursue regulation of the industry.
Such derivatives contracts, which do not expire and are often associated with leverage, have been an area of intense concern in the industry. For example, U.S. exchange Kraken recently announced the launch of perpetual futures on tokenized stocks to non-U.S. users.
Selig said Tuesday at an event at the Milken Institute in Washington that his agency is “working hard to achieve a professional future, a real professional future” in America over the next month or so. “We expect to make this announcement soon.”
“The previous administration drove a lot of these companies and liquidity overseas,” he noted.
That was the theme of his speech with SEC Chairman Paul Atkins. As they have often recently emphasized their shared mission on digital assets (which they call “cryptocurrency projects”), the two appeared on stage together and emphasized their unified approach.
One of the goals the pair is pursuing is an “innovation exception” to allow crypto experimentation without fear of regulatory crackdowns. Selig said they will also soon define how to engage with decentralized finance (DeFi) developers after years of prosecutions and regulatory uncertainty.
Selig, who can take action on his own as he is currently the only member of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s five-member committee, also said prediction markets – the overlapping cousin of the cryptocurrency industry – will receive guidance from the regulator “in the near future.” “We’re going to have very clear standards.” He said the agency is also working on a more sophisticated rulemaking process to soon give the position a more permanent basis than guidance, which could be procedurally easily eliminated and rewritten.
The regulation of events contracting companies, including leading companies such as Polymarket and Kalshi, has been controversial, with state betting regulators putting pressure on their own authorities over the company’s sports contracts. Selig came forward and fought back in court, arguing that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission serves as the primary regulator of such corporate activity.
“They can exist side by side,” he said Tuesday of the two regulatory regimes.
Atkins, however, delves into one of the shortcomings of the regulator’s current work: the legal status. While Atkins earlier believed the SEC could move forward without new laws to guide its cryptocurrency work, he said on Tuesday, “We do need statutory certainty.”
“We need awareness in Congress,” he said.
Two years ago, a U.S. Supreme Court ruling eliminated the significant power that federal regulators enjoyed in court disputes over their conduct, so the weight of individual policy guidance from agencies is no longer as important as it once was. Agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission are more susceptible to challenge, and their positions can be easily changed by officials who arrive at the commission in the future.
The U.S. Senate is still working on the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which aims to establish a regulatory system for the U.S. cryptocurrency market. The legislative effort remains mired in negotiations involving industry, bankers, lawmakers from both parties and the White House. As the midterm elections approach and time available in the Senate dwindles, the bill’s chances of passing in 2026 become increasingly difficult.
Read more: SEC Chairman Is Hosting an Event Sponsored by Cryptocurrency Firms Warring With It
