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The Chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Michael S. Selig, announced the establishment of the Innovation Advisory Committee (IAC) and appointed 35 members to provide recommendations on the regulation of breakthrough technologies such as artificial intelligence and blockchain.Committee members include representatives from blockchain projects such as Vivek Raman of Etherealize, Anatoly Yakovenko of Solana Labs, and Brad Garlinghouse of Ripple, as well as executives from major crypto trading platforms like Coinbase, Crypto.com, and Gemini. Founders of prediction markets Polymarket and Kalshi, as well as representatives from well-known venture capital firms like a16z crypto and Framework Ventures, are also included. Selig stated that the committee will assist the CFTC in developing rules that adapt to market realities, paving the way for a "golden age of American financial markets."

According to The Block, Paul Atkins, chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), stated at a Senate Banking Committee hearing that prediction markets are a "huge issue" and a regulatory focus he shares with Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) chairman Michael Selig.Atkins pointed out that prediction markets have "potential jurisdictional overlaps," currently primarily governed by the CFTC, but the two agencies will work together. When asked if clear rules would be established, he said "we'll have to wait and see," and noted that "a security is a security, and the definition of prediction markets and their products depends on specific wording." CFTC chairman Selig stated that he would ensure "reasonable rules and protections" are established for prediction markets to prevent them from being pushed overseas.The jurisdiction over prediction market regulation has become a contentious issue between federal and state governments. Operators argue that under the Commodity Exchange Act, all event contracts should be exclusively governed by the CFTC; while some states believe that the relevant platforms involve activities like sports betting, violating local gambling laws. Prediction markets have also recently come under additional scrutiny due to insider trading allegations and restrictive legislation targeting political betting.

According to The Block, Michael S. Selig, chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), announced the establishment of an innovation advisory committee consisting of 35 members, with several executives from the cryptocurrency industry appointed.Selig stated that the committee will assist the CFTC in developing a regulatory framework regarding the role of "breakthrough technologies" such as artificial intelligence and blockchain in financial markets, ensuring that its decisions reflect market realities and establishing clear rules for "a golden age of American financial markets." The committee members include representatives from blockchain projects, such as Vivek Raman from Etherealize, Anatoly Yakovenko from Solana Labs, Brad Garlinghouse from Ripple, Sergey Nazarov, CEO of Chainlink Labs, and Hayden Adams, CEO of Uniswap Labs.In terms of centralized exchanges, executives from Bullish, Coinbase, Crypto.com, Gemini, Kraken, Bitnomial, and Robinhood are included. Shayne Coplan, founder of the prediction market platform Polymarket, and Tarek Mansour, founder of Kalshi, have also been appointed. Chris Dixon from a16z crypto, Vance Spencer from Framework Ventures, and Alana Palmedo from Paradigm are also on the list. The committee also includes representatives from traditional financial institutions such as Cboe, CME, DTCC, Nasdaq, and options clearing companies.

According to market news, the enforcement team at the Chicago office of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has completely resigned. This office was once regarded as the agency's "top enforcement force," previously having 20 enforcement attorneys, and now none remain.This staff reduction comes as the CFTC seeks to significantly expand its regulatory scope into the cryptocurrency and prediction market sectors. Reports indicate that the same leadership responsible for the CFTC's staff cuts last year had actively advocated for the agency's jurisdiction to cover most of the cryptocurrency markets and sports prediction platforms. Caroline Pham, who served as the acting chair of the CFTC in 2025, pushed for a reduction of over 21% in the agency's workforce last year, and she is currently employed at the cryptocurrency company MoonPay.Former CFTC enforcement attorneys stated that this layoff is targeted, as the Chicago office has specialized experience and a key role in reaching multi-billion dollar settlements with cryptocurrency companies like FTX and Binance.

The new chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Mike Selig, stated that he supports legitimate innovation in prediction markets, and it is time to establish clear rules.Earlier reports indicated that the CFTC officially withdrew the proposal to ban prediction contracts for political events made during the Biden administration.

The chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Mike Selig, has withdrawn the proposed rule to ban political event contracts and rescinded the related guidance that previously caused confusion in the industry.Selig stated that the new regulations will be based on a reasonable interpretation of the Commodity Exchange Act, promoting responsible innovation in the derivatives market. The previous proposal had equated political event contracts with illegal contracts such as those related to war and terrorism, deeming them "not in the public interest." However, with the Trump administration appointing new leadership, the CFTC is shifting towards supporting prediction markets, including platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket. Selig's actions pave the way for more companies, such as Coinbase and Cboe, to enter the prediction market space. Additionally, the CFTC is actively involved in negotiations on Congress's cryptocurrency market structure legislation, aiming to establish itself as the primary regulator for the cryptocurrency spot market that does not involve securities.

The chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Mike Selig, announced on Wednesday the formal withdrawal of the "event contract" regulatory proposal put forward in 2024, and the repeal of a related guidance issued during the Biden administration.The proposal originally aimed to prohibit prediction contracts based on the outcomes of political events, equating them with contracts related to war, terrorism, and other "contrary to public interest" matters. Selig stated that the 2024 proposal was a manifestation of the previous administration's "overreach in value-judgment regulation." The CFTC will reintroduce a set of new rules based on the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) that are more consistent and rational, to support responsible innovation in the derivatives market and align with the legislative intent of Congress. This policy adjustment sends a clearer regulatory signal for prediction markets.Previously, the CFTC lost a lawsuit against Kalshi, which forced it to allow political prediction contracts to launch. With the new administration in place, institutions including Coinbase and Cboe have also begun actively engaging in prediction market-related businesses. The withdrawal of the old regulations is seen as a significant turning point in the direction of U.S. prediction market regulation.

According to Jinshi News, the nomination of Waller as the Federal Reserve Chair triggered the largest single-day increase in the dollar since May of last year. According to data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), in the week ending January 27, fund managers increased their bearish bets on the dollar by $8.3 billion, marking the largest increase since April 2025.At the same time, hedge funds reduced their net long positions in the dollar by $5.1 billion, the largest decrease since July 2024. Michael Brown, senior research strategist at Pepperstone Group, stated that despite the dollar's rebound, policy uncertainty will persist, and there are still reasons to short the dollar. During the Asian trading session on Monday, the dollar experienced significant volatility, initially rising before turning to decline.

According to FinanceFeeds, the SEC's official website disclosed that SEC Chair Paul S. Atkins and CFTC Chair Mike Selig have officially launched the Project Crypto joint initiative. This initiative aims to coordinate the regulatory standards of the two agencies for the cryptocurrency market in response to the bipartisan market structure legislation being advanced by Congress.Paul S. Atkins stated that the current regulatory model struggles to adapt to the reality of technological convergence, and fragmented regulation has become a source of confusion for investors rather than protection. Project Crypto will seek to establish a unified framework in areas such as trading, clearing, custody, and risk management, and will adhere to the principle of minimal effective dose for moderate regulation.Additionally, SEC Staff has provided guidance over the past year on aspects such as Memecoins, stablecoins, mining, staking, and the financial responsibilities of brokers, and has clarified that registered advisors and regulated funds may hold cryptocurrency assets at certain state-chartered financial institutions. This initiative marks a shift in regulatory focus from enforcement-driven actions to clearer rules, aiming to reduce compliance costs through inter-agency collaboration.

According to Bloomberg, the chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Michael Selig, stated that the agency will develop new rules for the prediction market industry while withdrawing the proposal made in 2024 to ban sports and political prediction contracts, as well as a warning document regarding sports contracts released by staff in 2025.Selig emphasized that the CFTC will support legitimate innovation in this market and reaffirmed its exclusive jurisdiction over commodity derivatives. Selig also mentioned that the CFTC will collaborate with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to formulate cryptocurrency regulations while cooperating with Congress on the ongoing digital asset legislation. He pointed out that although regulators can issue rules, formal legislation is still necessary.

On Thursday local time, during a meeting where the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) discussed regulatory coordination in the cryptocurrency sector, Senator Amy Klobuchar warned that the CFTC's powers should not be expanded without a full commission in place. "We cannot grant the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission such broad new powers with only one member."

The Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Paul Atkins, stated that he will attend a joint public event with CFTC Chairman Mike Selig on Thursday at 2 PM (Eastern Time) to discuss regulatory coordination issues between the two major regulatory agencies in the cryptocurrency space.Previously, Atkins mentioned that both parties would work together to fulfill President Trump's commitment to "make the U.S. the global crypto capital." The event will be held at the CFTC headquarters and will be open to the public, with a live online broadcast.

According to a post from the official White House X account, under Trump's push, the United States has become the world's cryptocurrency capital. The new chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Mike Selig, responded that there is no place more suitable for entrepreneurship than the "world's cryptocurrency capital." The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is modernizing its rules and regulations to ensure that the future of cryptocurrency and on-chain finance realizes "Made in America."

Galaxy Research Director Alex Thorn posted on the X platform that a key hearing in the legislative process for cryptocurrency market structure will take place next week. Republican members of the Senate Agriculture Committee have released a discussion draft of the "Digital Commodities Consumer Protection Act." This bill is expected to be merged with related legislative content completed by the Senate Banking Committee to form a comprehensive "Cryptocurrency Market Structure Act."As the Senate Agriculture Committee is responsible for overseeing the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), this draft primarily focuses on the digital commodities market, with the core content being to grant the CFTC exclusive regulatory authority over the spot cryptocurrency market, including cryptocurrency trading platforms, dealers, and brokers. The committee plans to hold a hearing on the bill's amendments on January 27 (Tuesday), during which bipartisan lawmakers may propose amendments. Although the commodity attributes section (including the CFTC's regulatory authority over the spot market) is generally considered less controversial than the securities attributes section in the cryptocurrency market structure discussions, this discussion draft still carries a noticeable partisan tone. It has not yet received the endorsement of key Democratic negotiators, although many provisions previously negotiated with Democrats have been included. Overall, the legislative text from the Senate Agriculture Committee aligns with market expectations, with its core being the establishment of a regulatory framework for the digital commodities spot market centered around the CFTC. Compared to the related topics being discussed by the Senate Banking Committee, this version has a narrower scope and is relatively less politically sensitive and controversial.

According to The Block, ahead of next week's Senate Agriculture Committee hearing, debate, and vote on the cryptocurrency market structure bill, Democratic lawmakers have submitted several proposed amendments. One of the amendments aims to add the "Digital Asset Ethics Act" to the bill.This amendment would prohibit "regulated persons," such as the President, Vice President, and members of Congress, from engaging in certain financial transactions involving digital assets. Bloomberg has estimated that Trump has profited about $1.4 billion from his cryptocurrency investments, which include investments from DeFi and stablecoin project World Liberty Financial. The Trump family also holds a 20% stake in the mining company American Bitcoin.Other amendments include measures aimed at preventing "digital asset self-service terminals" from conducting fraudulent transactions; as well as a requirement to delay the effectiveness of future cryptocurrency legislation until at least four members of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) are appointed. Currently, there is only one commissioner at the CFTC, while the maximum number of commissioners is five, making this issue a focal point of debate among some lawmakers.

The official U.S. SEC announced on X that it will collaborate with the CFTC next week to host a joint event on "Coordination in the Crypto Era and U.S. Financial Leadership." The event will take place at the CFTC headquarters, will be open to the public, and will be live-streamed on the official website.

According to the announcement from the Senate Agriculture Committee, Chairman John Boozman has released an updated version of the cryptocurrency market structure legislation, which aims to grant the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) new authority to regulate digital commodities.The draft has been revised based on the original bipartisan proposal, incorporating feedback from various parties. Although a final consensus with the Democrats could not be reached, Boozman emphasized that the legislative work will continue and looks forward to the formal review meeting scheduled for next Tuesday at 3 PM Eastern Time.

According to Cointelegraph, the Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Michael Selig, announced the appointment of senior crypto lawyer Michael Passalacqua as a senior advisor to the CFTC, who has extensive experience in cryptocurrency and blockchain litigation. Michael Passalacqua previously participated in drafting a letter that prompted the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to issue a no-action letter, allowing state-chartered trust companies to act as cryptocurrency custodians.As the CFTC's role in cryptocurrency regulation becomes increasingly important, the appointment of a new advisor with extensive experience in the crypto space represents the CFTC's effort to make its regulatory approach "future-facing."