Better Markets says the CFTC is the wrong cop for retail crypto

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission wants a bigger role in retail crypto. Better Markets, the financial reform advocacy group, thinks that is a bad idea. On October 5, 2026, the group criticized the CFTC’s new proposal to oversee leveraged retail crypto trading. Its argument: moving that oversight to the CFTC, rather than the Securities and Exchange Commission, would leave investors less protected. The critique landed the same day the CFTC released its proposal. What the CFTC is proposing The CFTC issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking, or ANPRM. That is an early step in the rulemaking process, where the agency asks the public for input before writing a formal rule. The notice covers two proposed frameworks: Regulation CTX and Regulation CAM. Regulation CTX focuses on leveraged retail crypto transactions, which the agency calls CTXs. Regulation CAM would create a new registration category for what the CFTC calls a “crypto asset market.” Platforms offering retail customers leveraged or margined crypto trading would fall under its requirements. Those requirements include proof-of-reserves and controls against market manipulation. The framework would also function as a v...