The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has taken another significant step towards developing a broader federal regulatory framework for retail crypto transactions involving (or related to) leverage, margin or financing. The CFTC has issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking, Regulation Crypto Asset Transactions and Regulation Crypto Asset Markets[1] (Proposal), on October 5, 2026, outlining two related frameworks: the proposed Regulation Crypto Asset Transactions and the proposed Regulation Crypto Asset Markets.

The Proposal offers a starting point, but does not yet contain proposed regulatory text. Instead, it sets out the CFTC’s preliminary thoughts and solicits public comment on how the agency should exercise its…