The United States has persistently stumbled in delivering clear regulatory guidance for digital assets. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) presides over instruments and assets deemed as securities, while the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) regulates the trading of derivatives on commodities.

This landscape leaves a regulatory gap for digital assets that defy the categorization of securities or commodity-based derivatives. Amid this regulatory chaos, experts assert that stakeholders must resist succumbing to a bearish narrative.

However, former SEC General Counsel and former Commissioner at CFTC, Dan M. Berkovitz, believes there is a need for further legislative amendment to the securities or commodities laws regarding market regulation with respect to digital assets.

While speaking exclusively to CryptoPotato, Berkovitz said,

“The existing commodity and security laws are adequate to regulate the derivative and securities markets. These laws are sufficiently flexible to accommodate new technologies, such as cryptocurrencies and blockchain-traded assets.”

No Rift Between CFTC and SEC on Digital Assets?

Between 2019 and 2023, the US cryptocurrency industry invested $56.44 million in lobbying, with $20.2 million spent this year alone, comprising 19.7% of Wall Street’s lobbying total. Despite these substantial numbers, U.S. watchdogs, particularly the SEC, have heightened oversight, demonstrating a paradox between industry influence and regulatory scrutiny.

Earlier this month, CFTC’s Chairman Rostin Behnam called on Congress to assume a more central role in guiding federal agencies toward establishing a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies.

Behnam emphasized the historically effective collaboration between the CFTC and the SEC while acknowledging that digital assets are unique. This statement came amidst an observed divergence betwe