Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Michael Selig says the agency is preparing U.S. derivatives markets for an era defined by onchain finance, mass tokenization, 24/7 trading and artificial intelligence, signaling that technologies pioneered in crypto are increasingly being treated as components of mainstream financial infrastructure.Speaking at the U.S. Treasury Market Conference on September 22, Selig said regulators cannot simply modernize existing markets and must instead prepare them for a fundamentally different financial architecture.That includes tailoring legacy regulatory frameworks so blockchain and AI can be adopted at scale, preparing market participants for onchain finance and continuous markets, and developing rules capable of supporting tokenized assets.The CFTC is simultaneously preparing for agentic finance, where increasingly autonomous AI systems could execute financial tasks and transactions. Its Innovation Task Force announced this week that its first Frontier Forum, scheduled for October 28, will focus specifically on artificial intelligence and agentic finance.
Tokenized Collateral Moves Into Derivatives Infrastructure
Selig identified real-world asset tokenization as one of the most important developments confronting regulators.He argued that high-quality tokenized collateral could make liquidity more dynamic and markets more resilient by allowing assets to move between clearinghouses, intermediaries and end users in real time. Blockchain-based markets could eventually support near-instant settlement and continuous collateral mobility rather than relying on infrastructure constrained by conventional banking hours.Stablecoins are becoming part of that transition. The CFTC has already expanded eligible tokenized collateral to include certain payment stablecoins issued by national trust banks. Selig said the Commission intends to explore additional ways for exchanges, clearinghouses and market participants to use stablecoins responsibly.The agency has also moved on crypto-native derivatives. In May, it approved the first “true” Bitcoin perpetual contract submitted by a CFTC-registered exchange, creating a regulated U.S. pathway for a product structure that has historically been concentrated on offshore crypto venues.
24/7 Trading Meets Agentic Finance
Continuous trading represents another major regulatory challenge.CFTC staff issued an advisory in May addressing 24/7 trading, clearing and settlement, noting that crypto derivatives may be particularly suitable because the underlying markets already operate continuously and globally.Selig nevertheless emphasized that the agency will not apply a one-size-fits-all approach. While crypto and precious-metals products may suit round-the-clock markets, agricultural, energy and certain financial contracts can present different liquidity, operational and risk-management considerations.That caution has already produced regulatory action. In July, the CFTC temporarily blocked CME from immediately introducing 24/7 crude-oil futures while the Commission examined whether continuous trading in physically deliverable energy markets was consistent with existing rules.AI adds another layer.The CFTC’s August Innovation Advisory Committee agenda described agentic finance as involving autonomous agents capable of executing financial transactions and managing portfolios, while highlighting the intersection between AI and crypto.Together, those developments point toward a market architecture in which assets can be tokenized, collateral can move continuously, exchanges can operate around the clock and software agents can increasingly participate directly in financial activity.Selig’s message is therefore broader than another pro-crypto regulatory statement. The CFTC is beginning to prepare its rules and market infrastructure for technologies that could eventually blur distinctions between traditional derivatives markets and crypto-native finance.The regulatory question is shifting from whether those technologies belong in U.S. markets to how existing safeguards around margin, surveillance, clearing and market integrity should operate when markets become continuous, programmable and increasingly autonomous.