CFTC chief says Bitcoin is the only commodity in wake of FTX collapse

by · December 1, 2022

The head of the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Rostin Behnam, claimed that Bitcoin is the only crypto-asset that can be viewed as a commodity during an invite-only crypto event at Princeton University, Fortune reported.

Behnam’s comments contrast with his earlier statements in October, where he claimed that Ether (ETH) could also be seen as a commodity. The CFTC chief was responding to a question about which crypto assets should be considered commodities and which qualify as securities.

The CFTC chief’s backtracking on his comments on ETH comes in the wake of heavy scrutiny by US regulators and allegations of corruption, with Republican lawmakers accusing the SEC chief of coordinating with FTX “to achieve a regulatory monopoly.”

The debate over which cryptocurrencies qualify as goods under the law has been long-running. Bitcoin is unanimously considered a non-security due to its true decentralized nature, while the status of Ether and several other cryptocurrencies has been a controversial topic. Ripple is also currently facing a securities lawsuit from the SEC.

The US financial regulator has found itself in hot water in the wake of the FTX crypto exchange collapse, primarily due to its association with the exchange.

The CFTC was poised to receive oversight capacity through proposed Senate legislation called the Digital Commodities Consumer Protection Act (DCCPA), while the CFTC chief faced a lot of criticism for the same, but defended the commission’s actions, arguing that they don’t have the luxury of waiting.

Behnam said the committee has limited oversight powers and blamed the “matrix of regulators” as an imperfect system. However, he called for better cooperation between the long list of regulatory bodies to come up with formidable regulations.

Related: Here’s how the CFTC can prevent the next FTX

The CFTC chief is scheduled for a December 1 congressional hearing to discuss the collapse of now-bankrupt crypto exchange FTX and the lessons learned from the debacle.

Former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s close ties to US politicians and his lobbying to make the CFTC the primary crypto regulatory body have been asked by many in the crypto community. A recent report also claimed that 8 US Congressmen tried to stop the SEC from asking about FTX.