Green Light for Crypto on the World’s Biggest Venues

Staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) issued a joint statement on Tuesday clarifying that registered exchanges “are not prohibited from facilitating the trading of certain spot commodity products.”

The move solidifies crypto assets as commodities, not securities, and opens the doors for more crypto-related products and services to be offered in the United States.

“Today’s joint staff statement represents a significant step forward in bringing innovation in the crypto asset markets back to America,” said SEC Chairman Paul Atkins.

Today the SEC and @CFTC issued a Joint Statement clarifying staff’s views that SEC- and CFTC- registered exchanges are not prohibited from facilitating the trading of certain spot commodity products: https://t.co/stsgiQTXjf

— U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (@SECGov) September 2, 2025

Crypto Trading Going Mainstream

NovaDius Wealth Management President Nate Geraci said that the main takeaway was “crypto trading going mainstream,” because it will be on the “world’s largest venues,” such as the NYSE and Nasdaq.

“Next stop after that? Every major traditional brokerage. I know you’re paying attention now.”

Atkins went on to state that market participants should have the “freedom to choose where they trade spot crypto assets,” adding that the Commission is committed to working with the CFTC to “ensure that our regulatory frameworks support innovation and competition in these rapidly evolving markets.”

Meanwhile, CFTC Acting Chairman Caroline Pham emphasized that this marks a departure from previous “mixed signals” that discouraged innovation. “The message was clear: innovation was not welcome,” she said before adding, “That chapter is over.”

“Today’s joint agency statement is the latest demonstration of our mutual objective of supporting growth and development in these markets, but it will not be the last.”

The statement builds on the SEC’s Project Crypto and CFTC’s Crypto Sprint programs, with both agencies inviting market participants to engage with staff on implementation questions.

Last week, the CFTC’s Division of Market Oversight issued an advisory stating that U.S.-based users can now trade on non-U.S. crypto exchanges.

No Reaction From Markets

There was a minor spike in crypto markets with total capitalization up marginally to $3.91 trillion. However, these overwhelming bullish statements from US regulators have failed to make much of an impact recently.

Bitcoin had reclaimed $111,000 as it continues to recover this week, but Ethereum had declined further, falling to $4,300 as it cools from its epic rally. Altcoins were generally in the green today with larger gains for Solana and Bitcoin Cash.

Most analysts agree that markets are also cooling from recent highs and resetting before the bull market continues in the fourth quarter of this year, partly driven by a Federal Reserve rate cut, which is now highly expected.