In his first public remarks since assuming the top position at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Mike Selig announced a reset of the regulatory landscape for prediction markets.
“It is time for clear rules and a clear understanding that the CFTC supports lawful innovation in these markets,” he said as he outlined four steps the agency will take.
Selig has directed CFTC staff to withdraw the 2024 event contracts rule proposal that would prohibit political and sports-related event contracts and the 2025 staff advisory, which cautioned registrants about offering access to sports-related event contracts due to ongoing litigation.
In place of the past actions, Selig has directed the agency to draft an event contracts rulemaking, with an aim to establish “clear standards for event contracts that provide certainty to market participants.”
Following with past agency actions, he has directed agency staff “to reassess the Commission’s participation in matters currently pending before the federal district and circuit courts. Where jurisdictional questions are at issue, the Commission has the expertise and responsibility to defend its exclusive jurisdiction over commodity derivatives.”
And in an effort to strengthen ties with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, CFTC staff will work with SEC staff on a joint interpretation of Title VII definitions.
“Clear, coordinated guidance will allow firms to scale products responsibly and reduce the number of innovations that fall into what [SEC] Chair [Paul] Atkins has aptly described as “the no man’s land” between our two agencies.
Following Selig’s remarks, he and Atkins sat down for a discussion moderated by Eleanor Terrett, co-founder and host of Crypto in America.
During the discussion, the agency chairs announced they will pursue a unified regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies.
SEC chair Paul Atkins already had started Project Crypto. Former CFTC acting chair Caroline Pham had launched a “crypto sprint” before her departure. The new CFTC chair, in making his first public remarks since taking the helm of the agency, announced the CFTC will pivot from the crypto sprint and align with the SEC through Project Crypto.
Atkins and Selig hope the harmonised effort between the agencies will help drive innovation in US financial markets. They outlined a shared agenda to reduce regulatory fragmentation, clarify jurisdictional boundaries and ensure US leadership in the emerging digital asset ecosystem.
While recognising past jurisdictional tensions, uniting on Project Crypto will serve as the primary vehicle for harmonisation. Selig made a point to state that “regulation by enforcement is dead, Operation Chokepoint is over.”
Atkins and Selig repeatedly underscored the market burden posed by duplicative or conflicting regulatory frameworks. The new initiative aims to draw bright jurisdictional lines between the two agencies, reduce duplicative compliance obligations, future proof US financial markets and support more consistent market oversight.
Both leaders noted that Congress is close to finalizing federal digital asset market structure legislation. However, they stressed that they are not waiting for legislation before beginning harmonisation efforts and issuing exemptions.
The CFTC is actively developing frameworks for eligible tokenised collateral, perpetual derivatives, leveraged retail transactions and event‑contracts, including political and sports‑related markets.
