Senate to Consider CFTC Amendments and More in Crypto Market Structure Legislation Review
Concerns from Congress mount over the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's operational capacity and balance as the US financial watchdog operates with only a single commissioner confirmed by the Senate.
Following severe weather conditions that forced the postponement of committee sessions and voting procedures, US congressional members are anticipated to reconvene at Capitol Hill on Wednesday. The focus will shift toward examining how members of the Senate plan to address various proposed modifications to a highly anticipated cryptocurrency market structure legislation.
Scheduled for Thursday, members serving on the Senate Agriculture Committee will convene for a markup session regarding the Digital Commodity Intermediaries Act (DCIA), legislation designed to create a comprehensive regulatory framework for digital asset markets.
This markup session represents one of the chamber's initial efforts to move forward with market structure legislation, particularly following the Senate Banking Committee's decision to delay its markup after the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase withdrew its endorsement of the proposed bill.
Of the 11 DCIA amendments that were accessible to the public at the time this article was written, proposals included measures to prohibit members of Congress and officials from the White House from participating in cryptocurrency industry activities, mandating that businesses compete regarding credit card processing fees, and tackling foreign meddling in American markets.
An additional amendment would halt the implementation of the legislation until the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) achieved a minimum of four commissioners serving in leadership positions.
The CFTC-related amendment, put forward by Minnesota's Senator Amy Klobuchar, came as a reaction to the shortage of commissioners serving at the federal financial regulatory body in the wake of acting chair Caroline Pham stepping down along with additional members during 2025.
Klobuchar's proposal stipulated that the market structure legislation, should it receive presidential approval and become law, would not become effective "until at least four commissioners" serving at the CFTC had received confirmation from the Senate.
The regulatory agency is designed to operate with five commissioners in total, with one serving in the capacity of chair. Following Pham's exit in December, only Chair Michael Selig, a Republican selected by US President Donald Trump, continues to serve.
Pushback from lawmakers and lobbying groups
According to the latest draft version of the DCIA made public on Jan. 21, the legislation would delineate specific responsibilities for both the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and CFTC regarding oversight of digital asset regulation. Nevertheless, certain legislators and leaders within the industry have voiced opposition to draft iterations of the bill circulating in both the banking and agriculture committees, citing concerns about provisions related to stablecoin rewards, tokenized equity securities, decentralized finance protocols, and ethical standards.
Uncertainty remains regarding which of the amendments under consideration by the Agriculture Committee will successfully pass through Thursday's markup session, or the manner in which legislators might merge the bill with the Banking Committee's version, which has not yet rescheduled its Jan. 15 markup meeting.