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In an interview with CNBC last week, CFTC Chairman Rostin Behnam discussed the CFTC and SEC's supervision of cryptocurrencies.
The chairman was asked for his thoughts on a plan in Congress that would place the Securities and Exchange Commission in control of security tokens and the Commodities Futures Trading Commission in charge of commodity tokens.
"This is a long-standing dispute between the CFTC and the SEC. We had a fantastic history together... Commodities should be regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and securities should be regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission," Behnam explained.
Some currencies in the crypto world will be securities, while others will be commodities, according to the CFTC chairman.
When asked about SEC Chairman Gary Gensler's contention that most crypto tokens are securities, Behnam emphasized that the most popular cryptocurrencies are commodities. He stressed:
"I can declare with certainty that bitcoin... is a commodity. As well as Ether."
"There are lots of community coins," the CFTC chief said, acknowledging that there may be a lot of security coins. "I think it makes sense that each agency has jurisdiction over commodities and securities separately," he explained.
If there is any disagreement between the two agencies, the CFTC chairman was asked. "I wouldn't say there's a disagreement," he said, noting that each agency strives to do the best it can.
Behnam commented about the crypto market sell-off last week:
"Many people were injured. There was a lot of value lost in the market, and there are now no client protections."
Both the CFTC and the SEC, he concluded, aim to regulate the crypto sector "carefully," safeguard clients, and maintain financial stability.
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