TL;DR
- Michael Selig said the United States is now the “crypto capital of the world,” tying that claim to a more active rulemaking agenda at the CFTC.
- The agency is drafting a crypto asset taxonomy and guidance for non-custodial software developers, including wallet and DeFi builders across U.S. markets today.
- Staff is also working on leveraged retail crypto trading rules, actual delivery standards, and clarity around true crypto-perpetuals.
In one of the clearest signals from Washington, Michael Selig’s message was unmistakably expansionary. Speaking Monday, the CFTC chair said the United States is now the “crypto capital of the world,” framing that claim around a regulatory agenda meant to replace uncertainty with clearer rules. The shift matters because it suggests the agency is moving from broad rhetoric to operational design. Rather than treating crypto as a policy problem to contain, Selig described a system being built to define jurisdiction, reduce friction, and give market participants a clearer compliance map as digital asset rules begin to take shape.
New rulemaking priorities begin to replace ambiguity
At the center of that agenda is a push to draw cleaner jurisdictional boundaries across crypto markets. Selig said the agency is drafting a clearer crypto asset taxonomy so firms can better understand whether a product falls under CFTC oversight, SEC oversight, both, or neither. That sounds technical, but it addresses one of the industry’s longest-running pain points: not knowing which regulator is in charge. He also tied the effort to wider coordination with the SEC, signaling that regulatory momentum is no longer only about enforcement posture, but about finally defining the lanes.
The practical reach of that effort widened further because Selig targeted DeFi and software developers for tailored guidance. He said staff had been directed to address how intermediary registration requirements apply to developers of non-custodial software systems such as digital wallets and decentralized finance applications. For years, that question has hovered over builders without a clear answer, leaving them exposed to compliance risk even when they do not custody customer assets. By confronting that issue directly, the CFTC appears to be acknowledging that software infrastructure cannot be treated exactly like traditional intermediaries if the rules are meant to fit reality.
Just as important, the agency is also turning toward market structure details that have remained unsettled for years. Selig said staff is thinking through rules that would clarify when leveraged, margined, or financed retail crypto commodity transactions may qualify for an “actual delivery” exception and be offered off-exchange, while also developing standards for margined spot trading on exchanges. He added that the agency is considering how to clarify its views on true crypto-perpetuals. Taken together, those steps suggest a regulator trying to convert political momentum into concrete market architecture.
