The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chair Michael Selig called for financial markets to prepare for "mass tokenization" of assets, signaling regulatory readiness to adapt existing frameworks for blockchain-based markets.
Speaking at the US Treasury Market Conference on Tuesday, Selig outlined potential benefits of tokenizing real-world assets (RWAs), including near-instant settlement and real-time collateral movement between clearinghouses and intermediaries. He compared the shift to the industry's earlier transition from hand signals to electronic trading, saying tokenization could advance efficiency across all asset classes.
The CFTC plans to pursue principles-based regulatory rules as tokenization and onchain finance develop. This approach follows the Senate's failure to advance the CLARITY Act in September. Selig had previously stated the CFTC would move forward with crypto rules under its existing authority if Congress did not pass new legislation.
On September 17, the CFTC submitted a regulatory action covering crypto asset transactions and markets for White House review, though the filing remains at the "prerule" stage without specific regulatory details.
SEC Advances Onchain Trading
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is also working to bring markets onchain. On September 17, the agency granted a temporary "Innovation Exemption" for tokenized US stock trading, allowing certain platforms to trade digital versions of US-listed stocks under defined conditions.
Jamie Selway, the SEC's Division of Trading and Markets Director, said in a recent interview that tokenization and crypto have become unnecessarily politicized, calling for bipartisan support for US market development in this area. SEC Chair Paul Atkins indicated in February that such exemptions could enable onchain trading while regulators develop longer-term frameworks.
