CFTC Chair Michael Selig Says ‘It’s Go Time’ for Crypto Rules, Plans ‘24/7 On-Chain’ Future

In an interview with CNBC, CFTC Chair Michael Selig said the agency is moving ahead with crypto market-structure rules despite the lack of new legislation.

• Selig said existing statutory authority gives the CFTC room to advance crypto rules through agency rulemaking.
• Selig said the CFTC is also preparing for financial markets that operate “24/7 on-chain” and increasingly rely on automation, algorithms and agentic finance.
• Last week, the CFTC submitted two crypto-related proposals, Regulation Crypto Asset Transactions and Regulation Crypto Asset Markets, to OIRA for review.

Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chair Michael Selig said on Wednesday that the agency is moving ahead with crypto market-structure rules despite the lack of new legislation, arguing that existing statutory authority gives regulators room to act.

“It’s go time,” Selig said in a CNBC interview, adding that the administration had prepared for the possibility that legislation would not move forward.

“The president has said since day one we’re going to have crypto market structure done,” Selig stated. “That means either legislation or rulemaking, and the agencies have a ton of existing statutory authority.”

Bitcoin (BTC) and the broader cryptocurrency market rallied last week after the CFTC filed two new proposals, Regulation Crypto Asset Transactions and Regulation Crypto Asset Markets, with the White House's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) for review.

Bitcoin’s price fell 2% in the last 24 hours, falling to around $84,500 after hitting an eight-month high of over $86,000 in the previous session. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around the apex cryptocurrency remained in ‘bullish’ territory over the past day. 

CFTC Pushes Ahead With Crypto Rules

Selig said the CFTC had previously reviewed its existing authorities as part of the president’s working group on digital asset markets and would continue using them to update the regulatory framework.

“We’re going to continue to ship rules to make sure that we’re ready to go for the new frontier,” he said.

The comments come after the CLARITY Act failed to clear the Senate last week, leaving the legislative path for a broader crypto market-structure framework unresolved.

Selig Eyes 24/7 On-Chain Markets

The CFTC chairman also outlined a broader shift he expects across financial markets, pointing to crypto, prediction markets, and artificial intelligence as technologies that are changing how markets operate.

“We really have to reevaluate all of our rules and regulations to make sure that we’re ready and prepared for this transition to 24/7 on-chain and these automated markets that are facilitated through the use of algorithms and agentic finance,” Selig said.

He added the CFTC is taking that modernization effort seriously, calling the current period an “exciting time” for financial markets.

Major U.S. equity indexes dipped in midday trade on Wednesday. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) dropped 0.50%, the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA) slipped 0.58%, and the Nasdaq-100 tracking Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) moved 0.76% lower. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around SPY moved to ‘bullish’ from ‘neutral’ territory over the past day. 

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