The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission is introducing a new form of federally regulated cryptocurrency trading, encouraging its regulated platforms to open leveraged spot digital asset products, which could begin as soon as today in partnership with Bitnomial.
Bitnomial Exchange is regulated by the U.S. Derivatives Regulator as a Designated Contract Market (DCM), meaning this new activity will launch in a fully regulated space with strong encouragement from the federal agency – including a direct meeting with acting chairwoman Caroline Pham to help the process amid the prolonged federal government shutdown.
“Recent events on offshore exchanges show us how important it is for Americans to have more choices and access to safe, regulated U.S. markets,” Fan said in a statement. “Now, for the first time ever, spot cryptocurrencies can be traded on CFTC-registered exchanges that have been the gold standard for nearly a century and enjoy the customer protections and market integrity Americans deserve.”
Fan called the move a “historic milestone” that tracks the recommendations of the President’s Task Force on Digital Asset Markets, which this year released a report setting out a cryptocurrency agenda for U.S. regulators. Fan said the CFTC was “finally using the authority we have had for decades” to launch the deal.
Chicago-based Bitnomial has not disclosed details about the launch of the transaction. It is one of several DCMs regulated by the CFTC, along with Coinbase, Kalshi and Polymarket.
It is one of the top agenda items in the CFTC’s so-called “Cryptocurrency Sprint” to achieve the government’s policy goals of supporting cryptocurrencies. It’s one of the top priorities for Ms. Fan as she awaits a permanent successor, which could come soon as the Senate moves forward with the confirmation process for Trump nominee Mike Selig.
Pham had been planning to leave the agency when a new chairman took over, leaving the man alone on what was supposed to be a five-member committee. The White House has yet to offer any other nominees to fill out the leadership, so the next chairman will be left alone to take over the cryptocurrency policy wave.
Other initiatives include a push for tokenized collateral including stablecoins, expected early next year, and broad rulemaking to incorporate blockchain technology into a range of CFTC regulations.
