- Top U.S. regulators have jointly paved the way for spot trading in crypto.
- The move marks a sharp reversal from the previous, more skeptical administration.
- Registered exchanges are now invited to collaborate with the SEC and CFTC.
The floodgates to the heart of the U.S. financial system have opened.
In a coordinated and groundbreaking move, the nation’s leading market watchdogs formally authorized registered broker-dealers to facilitate spot trading in crypto assets. This decisive shift signals a new, pro-innovation phase for the digital asset industry.
The joint statement from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on Tuesday is the clearest indication yet of a tectonic change in Washington’s approach to cryptocurrency.
During the prior administration, the industry faced skepticism and caution.
Now, under regulators appointed by the openly pro-crypto President Donald Trump, a broad and explicit pathway is being established for digital assets to integrate with the existing financial system.
A coordinated push from the top
This is not a tentative step, but a coordinated sprint.
Regulators revealed that under the SEC’s “Project Crypto” and the CFTC’s ongoing “crypto sprint,” leadership is actively pursuing President Trump’s directive to position the U.S. as a global crypto hub.
The agencies stated their united view that existing, regulated exchanges “are not prohibited from facilitating trading in certain spot products for crypto assets.”
This stance includes CFTC-registered designated contract markets (DCMs) and SEC-registered national securities exchanges (NSEs).
In a clear invitation to Wall Street, the agencies now encourage such entities to contact their staff to learn how to proceed.
The philosophy behind the move was laid out by the leaders themselves.
“Market participants should have the freedom to choose where they trade crypto assets on the spot market,” said SEC Chairman Paul Atkins in a statement.
His counterpart at the CFTC, Acting Chair Caroline Pham, echoed the sentiment, calling the joint statement “the latest demonstration of our shared goal to support growth and development in these markets, and it will not be the last.”
Clearing a path while Congress deliberates
Although the statement did not list specific cryptocurrencies and referred only to “certain spot crypto asset products,” its intent is unmistakable.
Regulators are acting decisively, using existing authority to open the financial system to crypto now, even as Congress continues its slower, deliberate work on a broader framework of market rules.
The move also directly addresses one of the most persistent and problematic gaps in U.S. crypto oversight: the CFTC’s historic lack of clear authority to fully regulate the spot market where actual assets change hands.
By inviting registered firms to engage, regulators are effectively building a bridge across regulatory boundaries while the legal foundations continue to be established.
The message to the financial world is clear: the waiting period is over, and it is time to build.