Acting CFTC Chair Pham Unveils First U.S.- Regulated Spot Crypto Markets

Acting CFTC Chair Caroline Pham has announced that, for the first time, listed spot cryptocurrency products will trade on U.S. federally regulated markets via CFTC-registered futures exchanges. The move is framed as a key step in the Trump Administration’s plan to usher in a “Golden Age of Innovation” and position the U.S. as the “crypto capital of the world.”

Pham said the CFTC is now using long-standing authority to give Americans access to regulated spot crypto markets onshore, after years in which much of the industry grew on offshore venues with weaker safeguards. She criticised past “regulation by enforcement” in crypto and argued that listing spot products on CFTC-registered exchanges will extend the customer protections and market integrity standards developed over nearly a century in U.S. derivatives markets.

The initiative follows recommendations from the President’s Working Group on Digital Asset Markets and the CFTC’s “Crypto Sprint” consultations, conducted alongside the SEC and other stakeholders. In parallel, the CFTC is exploring how tokenised collateral, including stablecoins, can be used in derivatives markets, and is preparing rule changes to enable wider use of blockchain and tokenisation in clearing, settlement, collateral and reporting.

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