Overview

• Acting Chair Caroline Pham launched a formal effort to recognize stablecoins and other tokenized assets as acceptable margin in U.S. derivatives markets.
• The initiative draws on the CFTC’s Global Markets Advisory Committee work and the President’s Working Group recommendations, alongside the new GENIUS Act framework for payment stablecoins.
• The agency flagged sandbox-style pilots before any rule changes, with open questions on custody, valuation, settlement mechanics and reserve requirements.
• Industry leaders from Circle, Coinbase, Ripple, Tether and Crypto.com endorsed the plan, highlighting potential gains in efficiency, lower costs and greater liquidity.
• The CFTC is coordinating with parallel SEC efforts, including Project Crypto and a proposed innovation exemption, as part of a broader push to modernize market infrastructure.