Phantom, a developer of self-hosted crypto wallets that is particularly popular in the Solana ecosystem, received a no-action letter from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), allowing it to provide users with access to certain regulated derivatives markets without registering as a broker.
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) Market Participants Division said in a statement on Tuesday that it would not recommend enforcement action against Phantom for failing to register as an introducing broker as long as the company meets a series of conditions. This relief applies to Phantom’s software, which acts as a non-custodial interface that connects users directly to CFTC-registered entities such as futures commission merchants and designated contract markets.
Phantom said in a blog post that the letter enables it to integrate access to regulated derivatives and event contracts directly within its application through registered partners, while ensuring users submit orders directly to the exchange. The company emphasized that it does not custody client funds or broker transactions.
Phantom described the results as a “first of its kind” for the model and the result of active engagement with regulators. “Instead of building first and asking for forgiveness later, we took a different approach,” the team wrote in a blog post, adding that early conversations with the CFTC helped clarify how unmanaged interfaces would work under existing rules.
Phantom CEO Brandon Millman said in a blog post: “A key part of making cryptocurrencies safe and easy to use is building financial products that are governed by clear, common-sense regulations. When necessary, working with regulators early on to find compliance pathways for these new products will lead to better outcomes for our users, the industry and the regulators themselves. This letter is proof of that.”
He added: “We are grateful to the CFTC for working with us to solve a truly novel problem, and we look forward to bringing more innovative products to consumers that give them confidence and set the right precedent.”
Read: Prediction markets coming to Phantom’s 20 million users via Kalshi
