CFTC
CFTC asks judge to dismiss CME lawsuit over crypto perpetual futures
The regulator claims the dispute is "much ado about nothing," noting that the order allows any designated contract market, including CME, to list these products.
Can you regulate a machine? Walt Lukken on the CFTC's Innovation Committee
CoinDesk's The Policy Protocol host Renato Mariotti takes a deep dive into the CFTC's inaugural Innovation Advisory Committee. Renato breaks down the viral, spicy exchange between CME Group CEO Terry Duffy and CFTC Chairman Michael Selig over event contracts and market manipulation, and introduces his own comment-letter concept "accountability arbitrage" that focuses on the enforcement gap that opens up when an AI agent authors a trading strategy. He then sits down with the committee's chair, Walt Lukken, President and CEO of the Futures Industry Association and a former acting CFTC chairman, who explains why Chairman Selig stood up the committee, how FIA is welcoming retail-first and formerly-offshore entrants while holding the line on customer protections, and why the hardest open question in the room was how to hold a machine accountable.
SEC drops 'Reg Crypto' rulemaking: do we still need Clarity?
CoinDesk's The Policy Protocol hosts Rebecca Rettig and Renato Mariotti open on President Trump's White House remarks about bringing Hyperliquid onshore, then dig into Judge Vernon Oliver's Connecticut ruling that slammed the CFTC's emergency order in the Kalshi fight. Alexander Zozos, General Counsel of Superstate and a former SEC staffer, joins the hosts to break down what “Reg Crypto” actually does: two fundraising exemptions plus a safe harbor that acts as a "barbell" on when securities laws apply, solving crypto's "Hotel California" problem of checking in but never checking out. Plus, Rebecca and Renato debrief on whether the rule is a foundation or a window, and name crypto lawyers as their Person of the Week.
U.S. CFTC chief puts staff on notice to create crypto regulations if Clarity Act fails
Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Mike Selig told the inaugural gathering of the Innovation Advisory Committee that his agency won't sit idle.
CFTC orders Kalshi to continue offering prediction markets in New York after state lawsuit
New York sued Kalshi last month in a bid to block it from operating sports-related prediction markets.
White House's Patrick Witt: CLARITY is 'not a giveaway' to crypto and Trump's 'historic' ethics concession
CoinDesk's The Policy Protocol hosts Rebecca Rettig and Renato Mariotti open on the week's biggest policy news from SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce's statement on crypto vaults to the London Stock Exchange's launch of a 24/5 tokenized market. Then, Patrick Witt, Executive Director of the President's Council of Advisors for Digital Assets, joins to make the case that the CLARITY Act deserves a Senate floor vote before the August recess and argues that President Trump's agreement to subject himself to conduct restrictions is a "historic" and unprecedented ethics concession. Witt also breaks down the CFTC's expanded mission and the fight over funding and staffing. Plus, Rebecca and Renato debrief on the lessons of MiCA and the state of bipartisan compromise on the Hill, and name the state attorneys general, led by an op-ed from Montana's AG, as their Person of the Week.
Sen. Hagerty says Warren tried to 'destroy' GENIUS, warns CLARITY faces political headwinds
CoinDesk's The Policy Protocol host Rebecca Rettig is joined by guest co-host Ryan VanGrack, Coinbase's newly appointed Vice Chairman, to unpack the week's biggest crypto policy developments. They begin with the escalating legal standoff between Kalshi, the state of Michigan and the CFTC, before turning to the U.S.-U.K.'s new joint recommendations on stablecoins and tokenized assets. On the one-year anniversary of the GENIUS Act, Rebecca sits down with the bill's architect, Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), who reflects on the legislative battle to pass the landmark stablecoin law and explains why the CLARITY Act now faces an even more challenging political path. The episode closes with Hero of the Week Harry Jung, Patrick Whitt's deputy who is stepping into a leading White House role on crypto policy while Whitt takes military leave, and Zero of the Week Sam Bankman-Fried, after the Senate unanimously passed a resolution opposing any pardon or commutation for the former FTX founder.
Polymarket bets on U.S. marketing blitz to win back trust after 4-year ban: Report
The prediction market's head of U.S. operations says the business is taking steps to legitimize itself after years of legal scrutiny.
Does the Clarity Act have a human trafficking blind spot?
CoinDesk's The Policy Protocol hosts Rebecca Rettig and Renato Mariotti open with two hot topics: Coinbase's SEC-registered AI agentic trading launch and tribal gaming operators' letter to Senators Thune and Schumer demanding that the CLARITY Act include a prohibition on prediction markets. Then Katie Boller Gosewisch, Executive Director of the Alliance to End Human Trafficking, joins to challenge CLARITY's Section 604, arguing that shielding DeFi developers from money-transmitter liability creates a "duty of care" gap that traffickers can exploit. Plus, Rebecca and Renato close by naming Meta as their Person of the Week for its reported move into points-based prediction markets.
CME chief executive says company plans to sue CFTC after perpetual futures approval
Kalshi's perpetual futures product did not meet the Dodd-Frank Act's definition of a "swap" and should not have been approved, Terrence Duffy said.
