Commodity Futures Trading Commission CFTC

Federal regulation of grain futures trading dates to the 1920s and was long handled by the Agriculture Department. As futures markets expanded into metals, currencies, and financial products, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission Act, signed on October 23, 1974, created an independent regulator, which began operating in April 1975. The CFTC has five commissioners appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate to five-year terms, no more than three from one party.

The CFTC oversees futures exchanges such as those in Chicago and New York, clearinghouses, brokers, and swap dealers, sets rules to keep markets fair and transparent, and brings enforcement cases for fraud and manipulation. After unregulated swaps contributed to the 2008 financial crisis, the Dodd-Frank Act of July 21, 2010, gave it authority over most of the swaps market, requiring many trades to be centrally cleared and reported. It has treated cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin as commodities and policed crypto fraud, and it oversees exchanges offering event and prediction contracts.

Congress has debated giving the CFTC authority over trading in crypto tokens that are not securities, and in July 2025 the House passed a market structure bill along those lines while a stablecoin law was enacted. At the same time, the commission operated for much of 2025 with only one or two of its five seats filled. Supporters of expanding its role say it is better suited than the SEC to oversee digital commodities, while critics say it is too small and underfunded for the job and that crypto rules should be stricter.