Bipartisan bill to give CFTC authority over exchanges and stablecoins

cointelegraph.com:

A bipartisan group of lawmakers in D.C. introduced an updated bill on April 28 to regulate cryptocurrency developers, dealers, exchanges, and stablecoin providers, bringing them under the regulatory control of the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

The Digital Commodity Exchange Act of 2022 (DCEA) was re-introduced to Congress by Republican Representatives Glenn Thompson and Tom Emmer with support from Democrat co-sponsors Darren Soto and Ro Khanna.

The updated version includes a section covering stablecoin providers, who can register as a “fixed-value digital commodity operator.” These operators would be obligated to share how the stablecoin operates, retaining records for the regulator along with providing information on the assets backing the “fixed-value digital commodity” and how they’re secured.

As per the last bill, the DCEA would authorize the CFTC to register and regulate cryptocurrency exchanges that offer spot trading of crypto commodities — those that allow traders to buy cryptocurrencies at the current price.

The DCEA would not affect the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) regulatory power over digital asset securities offerings, but instead classify cryptocurrencies that are not securities as digital commodities to be brought under regulation by the CFTC.

Crypto exchanges would also be subject to the same rules as other commodity providers for listing new cryptocurrencies on their platforms. Exchanges must demonstrate the crypto is “not readily susceptible to manipulation” through analyzing its mechanics such as its “purpose, functionality, governance structure, distribution, and participation.”

Developers of cryptocurrencies could also voluntarily register with the CFTC and make