CFTC Brings Digital Asset Experts Into Global Markets Committee
TL;DR Breakdown
- CFTC announces Scott Lucas as Co-chair for GMAC
- New members for DAMS include Ben Sherwing from Chainlinkg and Katherine Minarik from Uniswap
- CFTC yet to fill its chair position.
Caroline Pham, the acting chair for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced new members to its Global Markets Advisory Committee (GMAC) and its subcommittee Digital Asset Markets Subcommittee (DAMS).
New appointments at CFTC
CFTC announced the appointment of four new members in DAMS: Katherine Minarik, Chief Legal Officer at Uniswap Labs; Ben Sherwing, General Counsel at Chainlink Labs; James J. Hill, managing director and head of structure innovation at BNY; and Avery Ching, CEO and Co-Founder of Aptos Labs.
Moreover, Pham also announced the appointment of Scott Lucas, head of markets digital assets at J.P. Morgan, as Co-Chair of DAMS, who will serve alongside Sandy Kaul, executive vice president at Franklin Templeton.
Pham stated that the GMAC continues to shape not only domestic but global policy discussions regarding the emerging trends in digital asset ecosystem. She believes that the addition of the newly appointed Co-Chair brings “indispensible” expertise in distributed ledger technology and the evolution of global digital asset markets.
Lucas expressed his optimism in working with the CFTC to provide a clear and effective regulatory framework for the digital asset markets. Kaul stated that she was looking forward to continuing her work in bringing these financial innovations into the mainstream by enhancing customer safeguards and increasing investor trust and interest.
DAMS operates under the GMAC with the goal of provide regulatory clarity and advising policy decisions regarding digital asset markets. The subcommittee has previously developed a digital asset taxonomy to categorize various types of digital assets, as well as provided recommendations for tokenized non-cash collateral, with Kaul being a vital part of both these achievements.
However, despite the recent appointments, the CFTC chair position remains vacant while new candidates are being weighed.
U.S. Pushes Forward With Industry-Friendly Rules
The latest move reinforces the administration’s ongoing industry-friendly stance as other agencies and watchdogs also adopt more flexible approaches. This includes the SEC, which appears to have done a 180 in its crypto policy with the departure of Gary Gensler. The new SEC chair, Paul Atkins, has a vastly different as he seeks to draft clearer guidelines instead of relying upon lawsuits to ensure compliance.
Moreover, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has reaffirmed that regulated institutions like Banks can engage in cryptocurrency activity provided that they have adequate controls for it.
The policy’s impact is evident in the bullish momentum of the crypto market, with Bitcoin surpassing the $115,000 mark and mainstream adoption accelerating. Several U.S. states, including Michigan, have established or are preparing to establish strategic cryptocurrency reserves.
