FTX Follows Coinbase, Ripple in Releasing Regulatory Framework

FTX joins other exchanges, including Coinbase, in releasing a regulatory framework just five days before its CEO is scheduled to testify before congress.

article-image

Sam Bankman-Fried, founder and CEO, FTX

share

key takeaways

  • FTX has released a regulatory framework ahead of the congressional hearing next week
  • FTX is committed to ensuring that consumers are safe and can access the market, the exchange said

Just five days before its CEO is scheduled to testify before Congress on the state of the digital asset industry, cryptocurrency exchange FTX has thrown its hat into the ring with the release of a regulatory framework. 

FTX joins other exchanges, including Coinbase, Ripple and Binance in creating a set of guidelines around digital assets designed to help officials navigate cryptocurrency regulation. 

FTX released its “key principles for market regulation of crypto,” of which there are 10, via a blog post on Friday. 

The list is designed to “guide policy makers and regulators as they build the regulatory framework for spot and derivatives crypto markets,” the post read. 

The exchange argues for the creation of one central regulatory body, although not necessarily a new organization, with one set of rules for spot derivatives trading. The issue of jurisdiction over the digital asset industry has been at the top of mind for both regulators and industry leaders as officials struggle to determine how cryptocurrencies fit into the current system. 

“We expect that regulators likely will play an important role during that period and use the authorities they have to address the questions of how best to supervise the industry and its products,” Mark Wetjen, FTX US head of policy and regulatory strategy, told Blockworks. “Congress likely will continue in a fact-finding mode for much of this period but part of that process will be engagement with the regulators as well as the industry.” 

There have been questions about how digital assets should be classified, as securities or commodities or something entirely new. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which alongside the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has taken on much of the burden of cryptocurrency regulation, has acknowledged that it is lacking in resources and time to properly consider the industry. 

SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce admits that there is a jurisdictional battle over crypto, but she is unsure if creating a new body is the right answer. 

“We have such a fragmented regulatory system for financial products and services generally that I don’t know that adding another regulator would be my top preference,” she said during the virtual Bloomberg Financial Innovation Summit in November. 

Additionally, FTX argues that regulators need to ensure that stablecoins used on platforms like FTX meet “appropriate standards.” 

“Stable coins are exposed to reserve-volatility as well as redemption risk, and platform users should be entitled to some understanding of whether and to what extent those risks could impact their activity on the platform, including their impact on settlement of transactions,” the post read. 

The report is released just ahead of the House Financial Services Committee hearing titled “Digital Assets and the Future of Finance: Understanding the Challenges and Benefits of Financial Innovation in the United States,” where FTX head Sam Bankman-Fried is scheduled to appear. Bankman-Fried will be joined by executives from Paxos, Stellar, Coinbase and Circle on Dec. 8. 

FTX shares similar views to many of their competitors in the crypto space, Wetjen said. 

“FTX believes that while there is novelty posed by the technology when it comes to properly supervising the industry to protect investors, it makes sense to leverage existing policies and approaches that work where possible, and work with policy makers to fill remaining gaps,” he said. “FTX believes that much of the industry likely sees it the same way.”


Get the day’s top crypto news and insights delivered to your inbox every evening. Subscribe to Blockworks’ free newsletter now.


Tags

Upcoming Events

Javits Center North | 445 11th Ave

Tues - Thurs, March 18 - 20, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

recent research

LTIPPanalysis.png

Research

This report is a retroactive analysis of Arbitrum's Long Term Incentives Pilot Program (LTIPP). We collect relevant data at a protocol level and review bi-weekly updates to analyze recipients, their strategies, and the impact of the incentives on high level growth metrics. In particular, we want to highlight outperformers and underperformers, and glean any best practices or lessons learned for protocols distributing ARB incentives in the future. The overarching goal is to synthesize lessons learned that the DAO can reference as it begins thinking about future incentives programs–namely, the working group for incentives that is being actively discussed–especially as Timeboost introduces new conditions for trading and economic activity.

article-image

Sponsored

AI project Zerebro intersects the spheres of artificial intelligence, finance, art, music, and culture

article-image

Allmight is focused on furthering the United States’ leadership in crypto

article-image

The conditions Charles Schwab is waiting for before jumping headfirst into crypto could take shape soon

article-image

The FCA’s director of payments and digital assets shared some takeaways from chats with crypto companies and law firms

article-image

Let’s take a look at how US equities typically perform this time of year and what we might see in the coming days

article-image

Lumina introduces transparency and permissionless integration via an OP stack-based optimium, challenging traditional oracle designs