CFTC Acting Chair Carolyn Pham said the agency is preparing rules for the use of stablecoins and tokenized assets as collateral in regulated derivatives markets.

CFTC Wants to Allow Stablecoins as Collateral in Derivatives

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is preparing to allow derivatives traders to use stablecoins and tokenized assets as collateral.

CFTC Acting Chair Carolyn Pham said on Tuesday that the agency will work with market participants and accept feedback until Oct. 20.

“The markets have already chosen: tokenization is here and it is the future. Collateral management is the killer app for stablecoins,” Pham stressed.

Stablecoins as Treasurys and Cash

If the new rules are passed, USDC and USDT will be given the same status as cash or U.S. Treasury bonds in regulated derivatives trading. This will be another step after the passage of the GENIUS Act in July, which laid the groundwork for regulating payment stablecoins.

The initiative has already been supported by top industry players — Circle, Tether, Ripple, Coinbase and Crypto.com.

• Circle President Geet Tarbert said that “using stablecoins like USDC as collateral will reduce costs and open up liquidity globally 24/7/365.”
• Coinbase lawyer Paul Grewal emphasized that this will “put the U.S. ahead of global competition.”
• Ripple’s Jack McDonald called the initiative “a key step toward integrating stablecoins into the heart of financial markets.”

Context and Regulatory Background

Pham explained that the project is based on the recommendations of the Presidential Task Force on Digital Assets and was discussed at the Crypto CEO Forum back in February.

At the same time, SEC Chairman Paul Atkins announced the preparation of an “innovation exemption” – an exception that will allow crypto companies to release products without unnecessary barriers while the SEC forms a new regulatory framework.

The CFTC and the SEC are actually moving in sync: both regulators are signaling that the US is preparing the ground for a large-scale return of crypto companies to the domestic market.