Republican

Time

Acting Chair of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Caroline Pham is in talks with regulated US crypto exchanges to launch leveraged spot crypto products as early as next month.
In a Sunday X <a href="https://x.com/CarolineDPham/status/1987564125661368366?s=20" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">post</a>, Pham confirmed that she is pushing to allow leveraged spot crypto trading in the US and that she is in talks with regulated US crypto exchanges to launch leveraged crypto spot products next month.
Pham also confirmed that she continued meeting with industry representatives despite the government shutdown. The regulator is also currently considering issuing guidance for leveraged spot crypto products.
The news comes after the CFTC <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/cftc-spot-crypto-contracts-trading-initiative" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">launched an initiative in early August</a> to enable the trading of “spot crypto asset contracts” on exchanges registered with the regulator. In an <a href="https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/9105-25" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">announcement</a> at the time, Pham invited comment on the rules that governed “retail trading of commodities with leverage, margin, or financing.”
According to the <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/06/24/2020-11827/retail-commodity-transactions-involving-certain-digital-assets" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Federal Register</a>, the Commodity Exchange Act “provides that a <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/learn/articles/commodities-vs-securities" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">retail commodity transaction</a> entered into with a retail person which is executed on a leveraged or margined basis” is “subject to the Commission’s jurisdiction, unless the transaction results in actual delivery of the commodity within 28 days of the transaction.” Consequently, leveraged crypto spot positions would only be allowed if their duration were limited to 28 days or they would be illegal.
Related: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/republican-lawmaker-crypto-bills-congress" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">Republican Senator Says There’s a Small Time Frame for Passing Crypto Bill</a>
<h2 id="crypto-pushes-forward-despite-shutdown">Crypto pushes forward despite shutdown</h2>
A US government shutdown occurs when Congress fails to pass an annual spending bill or a short-term continuing resolution, blocking much of the federal government’s spending. In such situations, non-essential services are paused, some workers are furloughed, and others work without pay.
The current shutdown <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/nov/04/government-shutdown-35th-day-senate-funding-vote" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">started</a> on Oct. 1. However, Sunday reports suggest that the shutdown is <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/us-senate-reopen-government-crypto-bill-limbo" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">likely nearing its end</a> as the Senate moves to consider a continuing resolution to fund the government.
<figure><img alt="CFTC, United States, Cryptocurrency Exchange" src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2025-11/019a6d5b-db04-7509-a3a0-cb402997c2ab" title="">
 <figcaption style="text-align: center;">The US Capitol, housing the US Congress. Source: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/United_States_Congress#/media/File:US_Capitol_west_side.JPG" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Wikimedia</a>
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Related: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/mike-selig-cftc-chair-nomination-questions" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">Michael Selig Confirms CFTC Nomination, but Questions Linger</a>
The report follows speculation about the impact of the government shutdown on progress in US crypto regulation. Early October reports noted that <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/us-government-shutdown-impact-sec-crypto" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">the SEC began its shutdown</a> by announcing that it would “not engage in ongoing litigation,” except for emergency cases.
Despite this, at the end of October, many US senators reportedly <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/us-lawmakers-market-structure-bill-shutdown" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">moved to advance a bill on crypto market</a> structure rules, despite the shutdown. Reports from earlier this month also suggest that <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/white-house-david-sacks-market-structure-shutdown" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">meetings on the bill are still taking place</a> in the US Senate despite the shutdown.
Magazine: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/magazine/us-government-strategic-bitcoin-reserve-pakistan-btc-price-jan3-samson-mow/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">US risks being ‘front run’ on Bitcoin reserve by other nations: Samson Mow</a>

CFTC’s Caroline Pham confirms push to greenlight leveraged crypto trading in US

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