Regulatory Oversight of Crypto Exchanges Urged by CFTC Commissioner

CFTC Commissioner Christy Goldsmith Romero alerted regulatory organs against allowing cryptocurrency exchanges to self-certify with the agency to list products for trading.

The CFTC already allows self-certification for exchanges to list contracts for other products, such as commodities.

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However, CFTC Commissioner Christy Goldsmith Romero said the process would open the door to "regulatory arbitrage" as some crypto assets are likely securities that need to be overseen by a different agency, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

This warning comes in the wake of the recent collapse of the crypto exchange FTX as well as right after another CFTC Commissioner's calls for public roundtables to examine the causes of the crypto crash last summer.

Romero raised concerns about the level of research firms conduct before investing in crypto exchanges such as FTX. She suggested that there may be an incentive to overlook red flags due to a competitive market.

She also called for the crypto industry to enshrine strong corporate governance and increase the roles that gatekeepers like lawyers and compliance professionals play at companies in order to regain the public's trust.

"Gatekeepers themselves also need to step up and call for compliance, controls, and greater transparency," Romero stated.

In order to prevent similar incidents, Romero urged Congress to avoid permitting newly-regulated crypto exchanges to self-certify products for listing under the current process that limits CFTC oversight.

She also called on lawyers, compliance professionals, celebrities, venture capital firms, and pension fund investors to conduct better due diligence on crypto firms.

In other news, SARB Governor Lesetja Kganyago addressed the challenges around adopting CBDCs.