US Commodity Futures Trading Commission chair Mike Selig has unveiled the agency’s new innovation committee, aimed at guiding the regulation of emerging technologies like blockchain and AI, which are transforming financial markets.
The Innovation Advisory Committee replaces the Technology Advisory Committee and is looking to bring top crypto voices into the CFTC’s process to shape practical, forward-looking market regulations, Selig said on Monday.
The new committee will advise the CFTC on the “commercial, economic, and practical considerations of emerging products, platforms, and business models in the financial markets so that it can develop clear rules of the road for the Golden Age of American Financial Markets,” Selig said.
“Innovators are harnessing technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, and cloud computing to modernize legacy financial systems and build entirely new ones.”
Blockchain is changing finance by enabling faster, cheaper, and more transparent transactions in markets that can run 24/7/365, while AI more efficiently analyzes data sets to optimize trading and risk management, among other things.
Source: Mike Selig
The CFTC’s latest move follows in the footsteps of the Securities and Exchange Commission by adopting a more tech-friendly approach to regulation to attract innovators.
Industry leaders to shape the views of CFTC
Selig will sponsor the new committee and intends to nominate the 12 CEO Innovation Council participants as its charter members.
Among them are top crypto executives, including Gemini CEO Tyler Winklevoss, Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan, Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour, Crypto.com CEO Kris Marszalek and Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi.
From the traditional financial firms, executives, including Intercontinental Exchange CEO Jeff Sprecher, Cboe Global Markets CEO Craig Donohue, and Nasdaq CEO Adena Friedman, are also part of the list.
Selig is also seeking nominations for additional IAC membership, with applications open until Jan. 31, 2026.
The CFTC stated that it would also consider the viewpoints of regulatory bodies, academia, and public interest groups.
US government, private sector must share common goal: A16z
Tech-focused venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) said last Friday that crypto innovation will be critical to securing America’s future and winning the next century.
A16z said alignment between the US government and the private sector is crucial to defend American interests, warning that failure could cost the country its dominance:
“If America fails to win technologically, it will lose economically, militarily, geopolitically, and culturally. And the entire world will lose as well.”