When the Senate failed to advance the CLARITY Act on September 15, the CFTC and SEC both said they would keep writing crypto rules on their own. Three weeks later the CFTC showed what that looks like. On October 5, it published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking, an ANPRM, on how retail crypto transactions and the exchanges that host them should be regulated. It previews two frameworks, Regulation CTX and Regulation CAM, and asks the public a long list of questions about how they should work.

An ANPRM is the earliest formal step in rulemaking. It does not propose binding rules. The CFTC says it will use comments to inform possible future action. But the notice is detailed enough to show where the agency is heading, and its chairman, Michael Selig, framed it as a way to prevent fraud before it happens rather than only prosecuting it afterward, citing FTX as the example.

Regulation CTX: when does a crypto trade fall under the CFTC?

The first piece concerns scope. Under section 2(c)(2)(D) of the Commodity Exchange Act, the CFTC has authority over retail commodity transactions that are financed or leveraged, unless the commodity is actually delivered to the buyer within a set period. The CFTC calls the crypto version of these transactions CTXs. Much depends on what counts as delivery, and as summarized by law firm K&L Gates, the notice floats a definition built around “some meaningful degree of possession or control,” which could require the customer to hold private keys or wallet credentials. A mere entry on an exchange's internal ledger would not be enough.

The notice also asks whether a transaction should be covered when a third party materially helps arrange the financing, for example by facilitating, endorsing, or sharing revenue on a leverage arrangement. And it signals the CFTC's preliminary view that a customer who declines offered financing and pays in full can still enter a CTX. The agency also withdrew its earlier actual-delivery guidance in December 2025, so this is an attempt to replace guidance with a more formal framework.

Regulation CAM: a license built for crypto exchanges

The second piece is about the venues. An exchange that lists only CTXs could register as a “crypto asset market,” a tailored subcategory of the designated contract market (DCM) registration that already exists for futures exchanges. The CFTC describes it as a “purpose-fit” option for platforms that want a single federal scheme rather than a patchwork of state money-transmitter licenses.

Intermediaries would feature heavily. According to the law-firm summary, the CFTC believes futures commission merchants (FCMs) should intermediate all CTXs, a crypto asset market could also register as an FCM, and the clearing regime would be modified for crypto exchanges. Traditional DCMs could offer CTXs under their existing registrations. Exchanges might also need to list each leverage arrangement in their rulebooks, and the ban on manipulation would still apply.

The questions the CFTC is asking

The list of open questions shows how many pieces are undecided: position limits and accountability levels for crypto assets, operational and system safeguards tied to blockchains, custody standards, eligible leverage providers and margin, FCM capital and customer segregation, clearing and settlement, bankruptcy protection for customer assets in uncleared transactions, and whether using blockchains to accept orders would run into current regulations. Each is a place where industry, consumer groups, and other regulators can push for a different answer.

Where it fits with the SEC and Congress

The CFTC is not acting alone. The SEC's proposed Regulation Crypto Assets, which would create an exemption for offerings up to $5 million over four years and another for up to $75 million in any 12-month period, has a comment deadline of October 20. The SEC also granted a temporary innovation exemption for tokenized-securities venues that runs through September 17, 2031. Our reporting on the SEC proposal and on the CFTC sending its rulebook to the White House covers the earlier steps. Under the arrangement as reported, the CFTC cleared its draft through the White House's regulatory review office, which concluded on October 2, before publishing.

None of this replaces legislation. The House passed the CLARITY Act in July 2025, the Senate failed to invoke cloture 49–50 on September 15, and the Senate returns to legislative business on November 9. Regulators are building what they can under existing law. As we explained in our explainer on exemptive relief, rules made this way are faster but easier for a future administration or a court to change. For background on the agency, see our CFTC profile.

Why it matters

If Regulation CAM goes forward, U.S. crypto exchanges could get a federal registration path designed around their products instead of borrowed from stock or futures exchanges. If Regulation CTX's delivery test requires customers to control their own keys, it could change how exchanges and leveraged products are structured. Neither outcome is certain. The next steps are the comment period and, after that, a formal proposed rule that would invite a second round of comments. This is reporting, not legal or investment advice.

Further reading

Frequently asked

What did the CFTC actually publish?

On October 5, the CFTC issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) on retail commodity transactions involving crypto assets, a category it calls CTXs, under section 2(c)(2)(D) of the Commodity Exchange Act. An ANPRM is a request for public input before a rule is drafted. It does not itself impose requirements.

What are Regulation CTX and Regulation CAM?

Regulation CTX would address when a retail crypto transaction falls under CFTC oversight, including what counts as 'actual delivery.' Regulation CAM, for crypto asset markets, would create a tailored registration category for exchanges that list CTXs, as a subcategory of the existing designated contract market framework. Both names appear in the CFTC's release title; the details come from the questions it asks.

When are comments due?

Comments are due 60 days after publication in the Federal Register. Law-firm summaries of the notice put the deadline at December 14, 2026, but check the Federal Register notice itself. Separately, comments on the SEC's Regulation Crypto Assets proposal are due October 20.