The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (@CFTC) has updated its crypto guidance, giving regulated derivatives firms clearer direction on two practical questions that have been building in the industry.
What the Update Covers
The agency's Market Participants Division, Division of Market Oversight, and Division of Clearing and Risk released updates to their FAQs covering investments of customer funds in tokenized forms of permitted investments, and the use of blockchain technologies to satisfy recordkeeping requirements.
The updated guidance instructs regulated platforms that tokenized assets can be treated the same as the assets being tokenized, and that blockchain is sufficient for recordkeeping purposes. Customer funds can be invested in the tokenized forms of assets that already qualify as permissible under existing rules.
On the recordkeeping side, CFTC Regulation 1.31 already follows a technology-neutral framework for storing, retaining, and producing regulated records, designed to accommodate changing electronic systems rather than mandate a single technology. Records must still remain reliable, accessible, retained for the required period, and available when regulators request them.
Context and the Broader Push for Clarity
The FAQs were first released on March 20, 2026, and were created to answer questions from registrants and registered entities dealing with crypto assets and blockchain technology. The original guidance followed CFTC Staff Letter 25-39, known as the Tokenized Collateral Guidance, and Staff Letter 26-05, which provided a staff no-action position on digital assets accepted as margin collateral.
The entire FAQ document is classified as non-binding guidance. It represents the CFTC staff's current interpretation of existing rules, not new regulation with the force of law.
Chairman @ChairmanSelig framed the update as part of a continuing effort. "I'm pleased to see staff update these frequently asked questions consistent with the agency's ongoing efforts to provide regulatory clarity for the crypto industry," CFTC Chairman Mike Selig said in a statement.
The FAQ revision comes as the CFTC continues to navigate a shifting legislative landscape. The CFTC would have become the primary regulator for cryptocurrency under the Clarity Act, which failed to advance in the Senate, and Chairman Selig said in August that he would ask staff to find ways to codify market structure for digital assets. Selig has stated that the crypto industry will get market structure rules even if Congress does not pass the Clarity Act.
The timing of the FAQ update also coincides with rapid growth in tokenized real-world assets. According to data from Token Terminal, tokenized real-world assets reached $46 billion in market capitalization as of September 24, 2026, with funds making up the largest share at $34.7 billion, or 75.5% of the total, followed by commodities at $7.7 billion and tokenized stocks at $3.5 billion.
Sources:
CoinDesk: U.S. commodities firms can invest in tokenized assets, use blockchain records: CFTC
CFTC.gov: Original FAQ Press Release, March 20, 2026
Crypto Briefing: CFTC updates FAQs on crypto assets and blockchain technologies