SEC chairman backs giving the CFTC authority to oversee bitcoin and Ethereum

However, the commission noted that other cryptocurrencies are securities and fall under its jurisdiction

08.09.2022 - 14:40

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2 min

What’s new? SEC Chairman Gary Gensler said he would support a bill that would give more authority to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to oversee certain cryptocurrencies. Gensler added that the regulator needs more authority to “regulate nonsecurity tokens and related intermediaries.” This was reported by the Wall Street Journal.

Information on the WSJ website

What is the essence of the bill? Leaders of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, which oversees the CFTC, proposed a bill to give the commission oversight of the two largest cryptocurrencies, bitcoin and Ethereum. Currently, the CFTC can only regulate derivatives such as futures and swaps, as opposed to cash or spot markets. CFTC Chairman Rostin Behnam has asked Congress to pass a bill that would allow the commission to regulate markets for certain types of cryptocurrencies and provide it with funding for additional oversight.

Crypto lobbyists believe the CFTC should become the industry's primary regulator. In their view, SEC rules for traditional securities such as stocks and bonds are not appropriate because cryptocurrencies are not organized like traditional corporations with shareholders.

While Gensler conceded that his agency should not oversee BTC and ETH, the SEC noted that other cryptocurrencies are securities and fall under the commission's jurisdiction; they also must comply with investor protection laws.

On September 1, the SEC and CFTC began a public consultation on the regulation of cryptocurrency hedge funds. Regulators intend to strengthen fund disclosures and industry monitoring to mitigate potential risks.

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