The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission is preparing to move ahead with crypto market structure rules should Congress fail to pass the CLARITY Act, Chairman Michael Selig said Thursday.

Selig said the agency has already directed staff to explore a regulatory framework grounded in its existing authority. His remarks indicate that the CFTC does not intend to leave the U.S. crypto market without a regulatory path if lawmakers cannot reach an agreement. The stakes stem from a long-standing jurisdictional divide in U.S. crypto policy: the CFTC's mandate has historically centered on futures and derivatives markets, while securities oversight sits with the Securities and Exchange Commission, leaving digital asset firms to navigate overlapping regulatory claims.

CFTC Builds an Alternative Regulatory Path

Speaking at the agency's first Innovation Advisory Committee meeting, Selig said congressional legislation remains his preferred option. However, he noted that the CFTC could proceed with rulemaking if the bill continues to stall.

The proposed framework could expand oversight of crypto trading platforms and establish clearer rules for leveraged and margined digital asset trading, an area that sits close to the derivatives activity the agency already regulates. The agency is also examining ways for developers of on-chain finance protocols to operate legally within the United States.

Such a move would allow the CFTC to address market structure without waiting indefinitely for Congress, though the agency would still have to operate within its existing statutory authority, a constraint that shapes how far any CFTC-written rules could reach.

CLARITY Act Remains Key to a Long-Term Framework

The CLARITY Act is designed to establish a broader federal framework for digital assets and to clarify the respective responsibilities of the CFTC and the Securities and Exchange Commission, the very division of labor that has kept the question of who regulates crypto trading unresolved. The legislation has advanced through Congress but remains stalled in the Senate.

President Donald Trump has urged lawmakers to approve the bill, adding pressure for a bipartisan agreement. Senate leaders have scheduled a procedural vote for September, giving legislators another opportunity to move the measure forward. That vote now stands as the clearest near-term checkpoint for whether the legislative path stays open or whether agency rulemaking moves to the foreground.

Selig has previously warned that regulators could end up writing much of the industry's rulebook if Congress fails to act. He now appears prepared to turn that warning into a regulatory strategy.

For crypto businesses, the prospect of CFTC rulemaking could bring greater clarity for trading and decentralized finance. Still, industry participants may prefer legislation, since congressional rules could offer a more durable framework than agency regulations: rules written by a commission can be revisited by a future one, while changing a statute requires another act of Congress.