2026 US Cryptocurrency Regulation Outlook: SEC Advances Reforms, CFTC Gains Influence

BlockBeats News, December 27 — As the Trump administration enters its second year in office, the US crypto regulatory landscape has shifted. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) have moved from previous jurisdictional disputes to closer collaboration, jointly advancing crypto regulation. SEC Chair Paul Atkins is promoting the “Token Classification System,” Project Crypto, and an innovative exemption mechanism, and has approved listing standards for multiple crypto ETFs, while asset tokenization has become a regulatory focus. The CFTC is accelerating rule clarification through the “Crypto Sprint,” and under the new Chair Michael Selig, is expected to play a more central role in regulating cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and other crypto commodities. Industry insiders believe that by 2026, US crypto regulation will feature a dual-track pattern of SEC institutional innovation and CFTC-led market expansion. Former SEC senior attorney Howard Fischer pointed out that this is the first time in his memory that the two major agencies have advanced crypto regulation in a highly collaborative manner, and he expects this cooperation to dominate the regulatory agenda in 2026.