SEC Chairman Paul Atkins and CFTC Chairman Michael Selig will hold a discussion on harmonizing the supervision of crypto assets while the Senate XEM a market structure bill.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ( SEC ) and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced on Thursday that the two agencies will jointly hold an event on Tuesday to discuss harmonizing oversight of crypto assets.
SEC Chairman Paul Atkins and newly appointed CFTC Chairman Michael Selig will lead this discussion, marking a collaborative effort between the two leading US regulators amid the Trump administration's push to develop cryptocurrency assets.
In a joint statement, Atkins and Selig said that for too long, market participants have been forced to navigate regulatory boundaries that are both unclear in application and mismatched in design, relying solely on inherited jurisdictional enclaves.
The two leaders stressed that the agencies would rely on broader harmonization efforts to ensure that innovation can take root on American soil, under American law, and serve investors, consumers, and the nation's economic leadership.
This statement is seen as a positive sign that the two agencies are proactively seeking solutions to reduce overlap and conflict in the management of the digital asset market.
The Senate faces challenges over market structure bill.
The event takes place against the backdrop of the cryptocurrency industry closely monitoring developments in the Senate, where lawmakers are pushing a bill on the structure of the cryptocurrency market to clearly define how the SEC and CFTC will regulate this market.
The Senate Banking Committee and the Agriculture Committee are moving toward discussing and finalizing the text at the committee level, but both are facing delays due to the need to garner bipartisan support for the bill.
The Senate Banking Committee's draft resolution, released earlier this month, sparked controversy by adding restrictions on stablecoin yields and decentralized finance (DeFi), prompting major lobbyist Coinbase to withdraw its support and slowing the committee's XEM process.
Meanwhile, Republican senators on the Agriculture Committee released their draft bill on Wednesday, ahead of the markup session scheduled for next Tuesday, but failed to gain support from Democratic members of the committee.
The bill is expected to undergo further changes, as both committees need to mark up and approve their versions before sending them to the full Senate, where the versions will be merged for a final vote.
The Chia between the two parties regarding provisions related to stablecoins and DeFi is creating significant challenges for the legislative process, while the industry is awaiting a clear legal framework for development.
The SEC and CFTC's proactive decision to hold a joint event at this time is XEM as an effort to reduce uncertainty and provide impetus to the legislative process, while also demonstrating the Trump administration's commitment to building a more cryptocurrency-friendly legal environment in the United States.
