Overview
- Speaking alongside SEC Chair Paul Atkins in Washington, Mike Selig said the CFTC will issue guidance within roughly a month to permit U.S. “professional” perpetual futures under the agencies’ Project Crypto coordination and related innovation exceptions.
- Officials framed the shift as a bid to reclaim activity that migrated offshore, with recent examples such as Kraken offering perpetuals only to non-U.S. users.
- Selig said near-term guidance will also clarify how DeFi developers are treated after years of uncertainty and will set clear standards for prediction markets.
- With oversight of event-contracts firms contested by state gambling regulators, Selig has asserted the CFTC’s lead role in court and said a fuller rulemaking will follow to solidify policy beyond guidance.
- Atkins cautioned that regulators still need statutory certainty as a past Supreme Court ruling narrowed agency deference and a Senate effort to pass the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act remains stalled.