Key Takeaways
- Acting CFTC Chair Caroline Pham has officially confirmed that the agency is planning to allow regulated leveraged spot crypto trading in early December.
- The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) latest initiative could bring digital asset leverage products under the United States’ oversight.
- Prominent platforms such as CME Group, Cboe Futures Exchange, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), and Coinbase Derivatives are expected to take part in the launch.
- The CFTC would use existing authority under the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) to build the regulatory base structure for the strategy.
Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), a U.S government agency that regulates and oversees trading of things like oil, gold, and now crypto, has officially confirmed that the leveraged spot crypto trading will start as soon as December 2025. It means that the U.S government regulators have now approved a new way to trade cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana, using borrowed money(leverage) on official U.S. exchanges.
Acting CFTC Chair Caroline Pham has confirmed that the regulating agency is in its initial discussions to launch these products as early as next month. Analyst and crypto influencer Joe tweeted on X that CFTC’s Acting Chair Caroline Pham confirmed a move toward leveraged spot crypto trading, which opens a huge opportunity for both institutional and retail traders. He noted that regulatory clarity may drive adoption and liquidity on U.S. exchanges and expected volatility spikes as markets priced in the new trading framework. He suggested that this could be a catalyst for the next leg up in crypto.
Caroline Pham has said that this move from the CFTC ensures that retail products comprising leverage, margin, or financing are traded on regulated exchanges under the Commodity Exchange Act. The latest initiative from the CFTC is to make the United States a global hub for digital asset trading and attract institutional investors. According to multiple reports, Pham has held initial talks with CFTC-regulated exchanges like CME, Cboe Futures Exchange, and ICE Futures, along with crypto firms like Coinbase Derivatives and Polymarket US. Pham explained in her statement with CoinDesk that as they continued to work with Congress on bringing legislative clarity to these markets, they were also using existing authorities to swiftly implement recommendations from the President’s Working Group on Digital Asset Markets report.
The CFTC is Enhancing Market Integrity and Building a Framework With Prominent Exchanges
The initiative from the CFTC has received support from Paul Atkins, the SEC commissioner. He commented that offering margin-based crypto products under CFTC supervision could enhance liquidity and market transparency. The regulating organization is on the verge of strengthening market integrity and building a comprehensive framework with the assistance of prominent exchanges. To build a framework for leveraged spot crypto trading, the CFTC is working with major exchanges like CME Group, Cboe, ICE, and Coinbase Derivatives. They also conducted a public feedback period in August under Part 40 of the CFTC regulations, seeking comments from consumer advocates and industry participants. According to the CFTC officials and experts, the new structure the CFTC is working on will reduce the reliance on offshore platforms and bring the U.S.-based crypto trading completely under the CFTC supervision.
The CFTC is also developing a compliance framework for leveraged crypto spot products traded via DCMs(Designated Contract Markets), and it is the same regulatory structure that is generally used for commodity futures. Market experts believe that the newly structured framework will attract institutional capital from various types of funds, including pension funds, hedge funds, and asset managers. A prominent economist commented on X that this was a double-edged sword for US investors. While regulated leveraged spot trading could bring more liquidity and institutional players, it also opened a Pandora’s box of systemic risk. She remarked that the CFTC’s move essentially legitimized the very mechanism that had destroyed retail portfolios for years on offshore platforms. She warned that now, with the “stamp of approval,” this wealth extraction scheme was coming to Main Street. According to the experts, if the CFTC initiative becomes successful, it could lead to the beginning of a new class of regulated crypto products with improved institutional investors.
Also Read: BFIC Price Today: Token Shows Signs of Rally as Crypto Market Rebounds