CFTC Rulemaking: US Session Roundup
This is the Regulation & Policy US Session Roundup for November 13, 2026, covering 12:00 UTC to 23:59 UTC. The roundup covers six stories.
CFTC Rulemaking: US Session Roundup
This is the Regulation & Policy US Session Roundup for November 13, 2026, covering 12:00 UTC to 23:59 UTC. The roundup covers six stories. The lead: CFTC Chair Michael Selig declared industry support is shifting toward agency rulemaking after the CLARITY Act collapsed on a 49-50 Senate cloture vote in September, with the CFTC now advancing two proposed exchange frameworks as the de facto legislative substitute.
Key Takeaways
- CFTC Chair Selig says industry is aligning with agency rulemaking (Regulation CTX and Regulation CAM) after the CLARITY Act died in a 49-50 Senate cloture vote on September 15, 2026.
- The White House nominated four bipartisan commissioners for the SEC and CFTC on November 12, with a Senate Banking Committee hearing for SEC nominees scheduled for November 19, 2026.
- Three Supreme Court petitions from Robinhood, Crypto.com, and Kalshi challenge whether prediction market sports contracts are subject to federal wagering excise taxes; responses are due December 7, 2026.
- A federal judge denied a temporary restraining order against CFTC-approved single-stock perpetual futures, keeping the November 2 approvals for Coinbase Derivatives, Kalshi, and Bitnomial in place.
- The OCC granted Coinbase final national trust company approval around November 9, while senators Warren and Blumenthal pressed for records related to crypto charter approvals.
- Stand With Crypto reported that more than 300 pro-crypto lawmakers are entering the 120th Congress, up from roughly 96 in 2023, after endorsed candidates won 29 of 45 races in the November 2026 elections.
CFTC Chair Selig Says Industry Is Aligning With Agency Rulemaking as CLARITY Act Dies in Senate
CFTC Chair Michael Selig stated publicly that the crypto industry is increasingly supportive of CFTC rulemaking as congressional legislation remains stalled, according to Crypto Briefing. The pivot follows the Senate’s failure to advance the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which collapsed on a 49-50 cloture vote on September 15, 2026, leaving the crypto industry without a new congressional framework.
In response to the legislative vacuum, the CFTC proposed two new frameworks: Regulation CTX and Regulation CAM. These are proposed, not final, federal regulatory pathways for crypto exchanges operating under existing CFTC authority. The proposals signal the agency’s intent to fill the gap Congress left, using administrative rulemaking rather than waiting for new statutory authority. For related coverage, see Jupiter Review 2026: Is Solana's "Everything Exchange" Worth Using?.
Selig also filed geofencing interpretive guidance on November 5, 2026, ordering designated contract markets to remove geofencing restrictions within 30 days, and the CFTC has filed lawsuits against at least 10 states asserting exclusive federal jurisdiction over prediction markets. The combined moves show the agency is aggressively consolidating its regulatory perimeter at the same time Congress remains paralyzed. For readers following the CFTC’s expanding prediction market authority, Regulation CTX and Regulation CAM represent the next chapter of that same effort applied to crypto exchanges broadly.
Trump Nominates Bipartisan Slate of Four Commissioners to Run Short-Staffed SEC and CFTC
The White House transmitted nominations on November 12, 2026 for four commissioners to fill vacant seats at both the SEC and CFTC, according to the official White House nominations document. The CFTC nominees are Nathan Anonick (Republican, Virginia, term expiring June 19, 2031) and Matthew Rowland (Democrat, Washington DC, term expiring April 13, 2028). The SEC nominees are Kristin N. Johnson (Democrat, Michigan, term expiring June 5, 2029) and Steven Levine (Republican, Maryland, term expiring June 5, 2030). Context on this theme: dYdX Review 2026: A Perp DEX With Its Own Chain, Its Own Fees and a Few Scars.
The staffing situation at both agencies is severe: the SEC currently has only two of its five authorized commissioners, while the CFTC has just one, Bitcoin Magazine reported. Both agencies are attempting to manage a surge of crypto regulatory activity with skeleton crews.
The timing is politically tight. Democrats swept both congressional chambers in the November 3, 2026 midterms, and the Senate lame-duck session ends in January 2027 when Democratic control begins. The bipartisan slate, which these are Trump’s first Democratic nominees to either agency, appears designed to satisfy the Democratic caucus’s stated condition that it would not confirm Trump nominees unless he filled Democratic-designated seats. A Senate Banking Committee hearing for the SEC nominees is scheduled for November 19, 2026. Both CFTC nominees, Anonick and Rowland, worked on the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, the same legislation that collapsed in September. All four nominees have crypto policy experience; Johnson previously served as a CFTC commissioner focused on digital asset custody and DeFi, according to Crypto Briefing.
Supreme Court Set to Decide Whether Prediction Market Platforms Owe Federal Wagering Excise Taxes
Three separate petitions are now pending at the Supreme Court, all asking whether prediction market sports contracts are taxable wagers under Internal Revenue Code sections 4401 and 4421, which impose a 0.25% excise tax on authorized wagers. The petitions were filed by Robinhood (case 26-338, September 10), Crypto.com (26-344, September 11), and New Jersey on behalf of Kalshi (26-299, September 2, 2026), according to Protos. All three face a December 7, 2026 response deadline at the Court.
The commercial stakes are substantial. Robinhood’s Q3 2026 event contract revenue reached $173 million, roughly six times year-over-year, with 16.4 billion contracts traded. The company’s SEC filings state it has collected zero dollars in federal wagering taxes, taking the position that its contracts are not subject to such tax. Robinhood warned that an adverse ruling “could be material” and render contracts “uneconomical.” A bipartisan majority of US states backed New Jersey’s petition against Kalshi, putting the prediction market industry in direct conflict with both state governments and the existing federal tax code framework.
Coinbase Defends CFTC-Approved US Stock Perpetual Futures in Court; Arthur Hayes Says He Is Flattered
The CFTC approved applications from Coinbase Derivatives, Kalshi, and Bitnomial for single-stock perpetual futures on November 2, 2026. The Capital Markets Alliance promptly sued the CFTC to block the approvals, but on November 10, Judge Valerie Caproni denied a temporary restraining order, keeping the CFTC approvals in place, Crypto Briefing reported. Coinbase filed an amicus brief on the same date supporting CFTC authority, joined by Kalshi and Payward, the parent company of Kraken.
BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes offered a pointed observation on the moment: “Ten years later, Coinbase is in federal court defending the right to offer them on US stocks. I’m flattered.” Hayes launched perpetual swaps on BitMEX in May 2016. The court’s refusal to impose a restraining order represents early judicial deference to the CFTC’s authority to greenlight perpetual futures products that were previously unavailable to US retail investors, a pattern consistent with the broader CFTC’s defense of its crypto approval authority in other litigation.
OCC Grants Coinbase Final Trust Charter as Senators Warren and Blumenthal Demand Records
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency granted Coinbase’s national trust company final approval around November 9, 2026, completing a process that began with a preliminary conditional approval in April 2026, CoinTelegraph reported. The final charter marks a significant milestone for crypto custody under federal banking law, allowing Coinbase to operate as a federally chartered trust company.
Congressional opposition is already mobilizing. Sen. Elizabeth Warren sent a letter in May 2026 challenging at least nine OCC crypto trust-charter approvals, including Coinbase’s conditional approval at the time. Sen. Richard Blumenthal renewed records demands on November 5, 2026, requesting charter applications, legal analyses behind OCC approvals, and communications between OCC officials and the White House or Trump family from Binance, Tether, and two Trump-linked ventures. Blumenthal set a January 4, 2027 voluntary compliance deadline, one day before the new Democratic Senate majority assumes control. The incoming Senate Democratic majority’s early groundwork on oversight investigations reflects the same political dynamic driving the rushed confirmation timeline for the SEC and CFTC nominees discussed earlier.
Stand With Crypto Says Over 300 Pro-Crypto Lawmakers Are Entering the 120th Congress
Stand With Crypto executive director Mason Lynaugh stated that more than 300 pro-crypto members are heading into the 120th Congress, up from roughly 96 in 2023, according to Bitcoin Magazine. The organization’s endorsed candidates won 29 of 45 races in the November 2026 elections. In Florida’s FL-9 district, Stand With Crypto had 11,000 advocates; Darren Soto won by approximately 1,400 votes. The group reports 77,000 advocates in Ohio alone.
The tripling of self-identified pro-crypto lawmakers suggests a structural shift in Congressional attitudes toward digital assets. That said, the new Democratic majority may resist Republican-drafted legislation, meaning the 300-plus figure does not translate directly into a smooth legislative path. The more immediate effect may be in oversight hearings and the confirmation dynamics for the SEC and CFTC nominees, where a larger pro-crypto caucus could accelerate the timeline. For context on the broader congressional picture, the Asia Session Roundup for November 13 covered the earlier SEC and CFTC nomination reporting as it broke overnight.
What to Watch Next
- November 19, 2026: Senate Banking Committee hearing for SEC nominees Kristin N. Johnson and Steven Levine.
- December 7, 2026: Response deadline at the Supreme Court for all three prediction market wagering tax petitions (Robinhood 26-338, Crypto.com 26-344, Kalshi/NJ 26-299).
- January 4, 2027: Voluntary compliance deadline for Binance, Tether, and two Trump-linked ventures to respond to Sen. Blumenthal’s records demands.
- January 2027: Democratic Senate majority assumes control, closing the lame-duck confirmation window for SEC and CFTC nominees.
This roundup summarizes reporting published from 12:00 UTC on November 13, 2026 to 23:59 UTC on November 13, 2026. Each item links to its original source.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency and digital asset markets carry significant risk. Always do your own research before making decisions.