On 5 October 2026 the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking on Regulation Crypto Asset Transactions (CTX) and Regulation Crypto Asset Markets (CAM). This news item covers what the notice says, what is only a preliminary view and the comment deadline.
Checked 28 October 2026.
What the CFTC published
The notice (RIN 3038-AF80) was released on 5 October and printed in the Federal Register on 13 October 2026 (91 FR 64811). An advance notice contains questions and no rule text, so nothing in it binds anyone yet. The CFTC says it intends to build a framework for retail commodity transactions in crypto assets under section 2(c)(2)(D) of the Commodity Exchange Act, which it calls CTXs, and will use the comments to decide on a later rulemaking.
Regulation CTX, the preliminary view
A transaction falls under section 2(c)(2)(D) if it is leveraged, margined or financed, or if it is offered on that basis even when the customer does not use it. The CFTC suggests that such an offer can sit in standard documents, for example onboarding papers, exchange terms or margin documentation, and can cover all transactions on an exchange or in a customer account. Financing arranged through a third party may count too, for example where the exchange markets it, shares revenue from it or runs it through its own platform.
The statute excepts transactions that end in actual delivery. The CFTC’s preliminary view is that delivery needs a meaningful degree of possession or control, which for a crypto asset may mean holding the private keys to the wallet. A balance recorded only in the exchange’s internal books does not count, so a fully paid position kept there stays under the Act until the asset is delivered. After actual delivery the CFTC keeps only its anti-fraud and anti-manipulation powers.
Regulation CAM, the proposed market category
The CFTC proposes a sub-category of registered exchange, a crypto asset market, built for CTXs. It would let platforms keep integrated models that combine trading, settlement and custody under conditions, and it asks how retail leverage should work. The notice contemplates leverage from an eligible leverage provider, for example a bank sponsored by a futures commission merchant, and asks about margin, intermediaries and clearing.
Deadline and what to do
Comments are due 60 days after the Federal Register publication, which by our count is 12 December 2026, and are filed on Regulations.gov. Platforms that serve US retail customers can already review three points, namely how their onboarding and margin documents describe leverage, whether withdrawals give customers real control of the assets, and how staking and governance rights are handled. Payment stablecoins from permitted issuers are carved out of the commodity definition by the GENIUS Act, see our news item on the OCC rule.
See also: OCC Issues Final GENIUS Act Rule for Payment Stablecoin Issuers; ESMA and Non-MiCA Stablecoins.
