The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission — the sister agencies that will regulate most U.S. crypto activity — have been rivals in the past over crypto issues, but they're now pursuing a formal memorandum of understanding to combine agency efforts, said SEC Chairman Paul Atkins.
"We are reorienting our approach toward a new golden age of regulatory coherence," Atkins was set to say on Tuesday in remarks prepared for the FIA Global Cleared Markets Conference in Florida. "More than aligning our rules, a harmonized framework also demands coordinating our responses to the firms that operate within it, including those that have questions of interpretation or request exemptive relief."
Atkins said he's also directed his staff to begin setting up joint meetings with CFTC employees on product applications, and a new "harmonization" website will allow firms to request coordinated discussions with both agencies.
"Firms should not be shuffled back and forth between regulators when a product touches elements of both regulatory frameworks," he said. "Nor should clarity depend on which agency happens to speak first."
The division of roles between the SEC, which regulates securities and the exchanges on which they trade, and the CFTC, the commodities watchdog that oversees derivatives markets, has been a key source of friction in the process of establishing U.S. crypto trading. No formal rules have been set to say where crypto products belong, and years of regulatory actions and legal disputes have resulted.
Since the arrival of leaders appointed by President Donald Trump, the two agencies have embraced friendly crypto policies as a top priority, in line with the president's requests. They're now working on several, including policies to clarify how digital assets will be defined as securities and commodities.
The formalized cooperation will also extend to enforcement decisions and regulatory examinations, which will become a more routine element for crypto firms as they enter more deeply into federal oversight. That could save the companies from having to go through repetitive exams.
"Coordinated exam planning for dually regulated entities should become standard practice," Atkins said. "Shared supervisory findings, subject to assurances of confidentiality, should be the norm rather than the exception."
Atkins also revisited his intention to carve out a path for super-apps that allow users to conduct business across both agencies' jurisdictions.
"In the technology world, a super-app integrates multiple services into a single seamless interface," he said. "The user does not toggle between separate systems to complete related tasks. Instead, integration occurs invisibly behind the scenes."
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