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CFTC Pilot Lets Bitcoin, Ether and USDC Serve as Margin Collateral Under Tight Oversight

Regulators will gauge operational risks through weekly reports from qualifying brokers during an initial three‑month review.

Overview

  • The supervised program allows eligible futures commission merchants to accept BTC, ETH and payment stablecoins like USDC as customer margin in U.S. derivatives markets.
  • Participants must submit weekly disclosures for the first three months and promptly notify the CFTC of any material incidents involving digital collateral.
  • The CFTC withdrew Staff Advisory 20-34 from 2020, removing a constraint that had limited use of virtual currencies in segregated customer accounts.
  • New, technology‑neutral guidance explains how tokenized real‑world assets such as Treasuries and money‑market funds should meet enforceability, custody and valuation standards.
  • A limited no‑action position permits qualifying firms to hold certain digital assets in segregated accounts, as the agency tests onshoring of crypto activity enabled by the GENIUS Act and welcomed by industry leaders.